No Stormont elections before Christmas
An announcement that there will be no fresh Stormont election in December has been described as “classic Tory chaos”.
After days of speculation following the collapse of the Assembly, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris said there will not be an election in December.
He said he will outline his next steps in the UK parliament next week.
Mr Heaton-Harris is obliged to call an election within 12 weeks of October 28th when the deadline for the Northern Ireland parties to form a fresh executive ran out.
Twitter lay-offs in Dublin
A number of Twitter employees at the firm's European headquarters in Dublin have said on social media that they've been laid off.
Twitter is expected to inform staff on Friday whether they are to be dismissed as part of job cuts in the wake of Elon Musk’s takeover.
There have been suggestions that as many as half of the social media giant’s global workforce could be cut.
Twitter employs more than 7,500 people around the world.
The company has a significant presence in Ireland. Accounts show the tech firm employed less than 200 people prior to the pandemic, but this increased to 243 in 2020. Today Twitter employs an estimated 500 people at offices in Dublin.
Russia guilty of energy terrorism, says Zelenskiy
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has accused Russia of engaging in “energy terrorism” after Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy network left millions of residents without power.
About 4.5 million people were without electricity across the country, Mr Zelenskiy said in his nightly address on Thursday.
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said 450,000 apartments in the capital alone did not have power on Friday.
“I appeal to all residents of the capital: save electricity as much as possible, because the situation remains difficult!” the mayor wrote on Telegram.
Ex-Pakisan PM stable after shooting
Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan is in a stable condition after being shot and wounded during a protest march, a senior leader from his party said.
Mr Khan’s protest march and rallies were peaceful until Thursday afternoon’s attack, raising concerns about growing political instability in Pakistan, a country with a history of political violence and assassinations.
One of Mr Khan’s supporters was killed and 13 others, including two legislators, were wounded in the attack.
“There is no doubt about it,” said Fawad Chaudhry, a senior leader from Mr Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf party.
