The Irish Press - News from Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford, Drogheda, Galyway, Ireland and the world

Any resemblance to reality is purely coincidental. As war rages in Ukraine, NATO and its partners will launch exercises in Norway on Monday aimed at coming to the rescue of one of its own.

Most business owners have shut up shop and fled Ukraine's Mikolaiv, but florist Angela Kalisnik continues to sell tulips and roses just a short drive away from the frontline.

Standing in front of a half-American, half-rainbow flag outside her home, Rebekah Bryant is outraged by a Texas order that considers medical hormonal treatments for transgender minors to be a crime.

As the founders of massive startups like Theranos, WeWork and Uber fall from grace, their failures have proven rich territory for television series.

A Texas judge on Friday blocked investigations into the parents of transgender minors, halting for the time being a controversial directive by the southern US state's governor.

After 10 years in prison for "insulting Islam," Saudi blogger and human rights activist Raif Badawi, who has become a symbol of freedom of expression around the world, was released on Friday.

Clayton Kershaw, the three-time Cy Young Award-winner who helped the Los Angeles Dodgers win the 2020 World Series, will be with the club at least one more year, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

Honduras on Friday clarified that existing open-pit mining contracts remain in effect, after President Xiomara Castro said she was banning the practice.

Major League Baseball extended Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer's administrative leave by one week on Friday over assault allegations, one month after prosecutors said he will not be charged over the claims.

Russian forces inched towards Kyiv and pounded civilian areas in other Ukrainian cities Friday, drawing warnings of "unimaginable tragedy" as the US and the EU moved to tighten the economic noose around the Kremlin.

Former world number one Andy Murray and US Open champion Emma Raducanu got the ball rolling for Britain at Indian Wells on Friday with straight-sets Stadium Court victories.

Houston Texans quarterback DeShaun Watson will not face criminal prosecution over allegations of sexual misconduct made by multiple massage therapists, prosecutors said Friday.

France coach Fabien Galthie hailed his side's heroic defensive effort after a gutsy 13-9 victory over Wales that kept alive dreams of a first Six Nations Grand Slam in 12 years.

Atletico Madrid edged out Cadiz 2-1 on Friday to move into third place in La Liga and earn a timely morale-boost ahead of their Champions League trip to Manchester United next week.

Zak Crawley's undefeated second Test century and a composed, unbeaten 84 by skipper Joe Root pushed England towards safety at 217 for one in their second innings on a rain-shortened fourth day of the first Test at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Friday.

Wall Street ended a downbeat week with further losses Friday as traders braced for continued economic fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine as well as looming Federal Reserve rate hikes, though European indices saw gains.

France kept their bid for a first Six Nations Grand Slam since 2010 on track after edging Wales 13-9 in a thoroughly absorbing Test in Cardiff on Friday.

Former world number one Andy Murray rallied after a dismal first set to beat Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel in the first round at Indian Wells on Friday and claim a 700th ATP Tour match victory.

Chelsea have had several accounts and credit cards suspended temporarily following sanctions imposed on club owner Roman Abramovich by the UK government, British media reported Friday.

The US and the EU moved Friday to tighten the economic noose around the Kremlin as Russian forces inched toward the capital Kyiv and pounded civilian areas of Ukrainian cities, drawing a flurry of warnings of potential war crimes.

Australian globe-trotter Michael Cheika was Friday named as the new coach of Argentina on a contract which will take him through to the 2023 World Cup.

Last-minute Russian demands related to the Ukraine conflict threatened to derail the near-complete process of reviving the Iran nuclear deal Friday, as the EU announced negotiations would be paused.

Entertainment and theme park giant Disney has halted all political donations in Florida after an outcry among LGBTQ staff over its silence on perceived "anti-gay" legislation, its CEO said Friday.

A plaster on his eye, eight-year-old Dima Kasyanov lies unconscious on a hospital bed in Ukraine's second city Kharkiv after a Russian missile blasted through his home.

YouTube on Friday broadened its blocking of Russian state-linked media channels to apply internationally after initially barring them only in Europe following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Big and scary-looking Joro spiders have spread from Asia to the southern United States and are now poised to colonize the country's cooler climes -- but they're nothing to fear and might end up actually helping local ecosystems.

Neymar will rejoin Brazil for its final two World Cup qualifiers, after missing the national team's first two matches of the year due to injury, coach Tite said Friday, announcing his squad.

The United States has not seen evidence that troops from close Russian ally Belarus are in Ukraine, the Pentagon said Friday.

Actor Alec Baldwin wanted to finish filming "Rust" in the weeks after the fatal on-set shooting of a cinematographer, new legal documents showed Friday.

Zak Crawley and Joe Root made the most of a benign pitch and uninspired West Indies bowling to compile unbeaten half-centuries, taking England through a rain-shortened afternoon session to be 146 for one at tea, ahead by 82 runs, on the fourth day of the first Test on Friday.

PGA Tour chiefs on Friday acknowledged the possibility that The Players Championship might not be finished until next week as poor weather once again forced play to be suspended.

Western countries accused Russia of spreading "wild" conspiracy theories at the United Nations Friday after Moscow's envoy told diplomats that America and Ukraine had researched using bats to conduct biological warfare.