Your Monday evening catch-up

Here’s a briefing on some of the stories and issues highlighted on irishexaminer.com today.

Hungarian MPs have approved legislation allowing the government to send troops to help police manage the refugee crisis. The bill lets soldiers carry out many of the same tasks as police, such as checking ID, detaining suspects and controlling the flow of traffic at the borders.

IRELAND

A Garda has been sentenced to 200 hours community service for attacking a drunk man in a Santa hat during an arrest in Dublin city-centre. Donal O’Neill (aged 31) who has been based at Pearse Garda Street station in Dublin since 2006, had denied assaulting Tim Dowling (aged 29) at Pearse Street in the early hours of December 16, 2012, but was found guilty following his trial in June.

Martin McGuinness

Martin McGuinness has challenged political rivals making claims about Sinn Féin links to criminality to “put up or shut up”. As cross-party talks got under way in Belfast to save the power sharing administration amid a crisis over an IRA-linked murder, the Sinn Féin Deputy First Minister made a fiery defence of his party’s commitment to peace.

Three Cork students have won awards at the EU Contest for Young Scientists in Milan. Eimear Murphy and Ian O’Sullivan from Coláiste Treasa in Kanturk won the Irish BT Young Scientist competition this year with their project, examining the effects that parental alcohol consumption can have on their adolescent children.