Your Thursday evening catch-up
IRELAND
Gardaí are investigating the kidnapping of a family in Dublin this morning. A mother and daughter, aged in their 50s and 20s, were taken from their house on Gracefield Road, Artane, north Dublin, at around 5am this morning by three armed and masked men who had forced their way in.
A teenage girl has gone missing from her home in Tipperary. Gardaí are searching for 18-year-old Sophie Burke was last seen leaving her house at Elm Park, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, yesterday.
A 29-year-old man has been charged in connection with an attack in Cork city centre which left a pensioner with serious injuries to his face and head.
Two Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), which Gardaí believe were to be used by dissident republican terrorists, have been recovered and made safe by the defence forces on agricultural lands in Co Limerick.
Catholic bishops have yet again rowed into the debate over abortion laws, stating it would be a “direct attack on the most fundamental of all human rights” to repeal the eighth amendment.
Ireland has the youngest population in the European Union, with one in four now aged 14 or under.
A woman who was beaten, stabbed and falsely imprisoned in the family home by her then husband has pleaded with other victims of domestic abuse to stand up for themselves.
WORLD
Soon after more than 10 hours debating whether or not to extend RAF air strikes against the so-called 'Islamic State' group in Syria, MPs in the British House of Commons broke into uproarious laughter.
President Barack Obama has said it is possible the mass shooting in California was related to terrorism, but that authorities still do not know.
SPORT
Arsene Wenger still does not know how long Arsenal will have to cope without Alexis Sanchez.
Rory McIlroy has reportedly popped the question to his girlfriend Erica Stoll in Paris. The pair are currently enjoying a romantic getaway in the city of love and now sources are claiming the pair are engaged to be married.
BUSINESS
Corporate taxes continued to flood into the exchequer’s coffers last month, compounding a mystery about their source and raising doubts about whether a future government can rely on the company receipts after the election.
Large Irish companies are adopting cloud technologies at a faster rate than their UK counterparts but have different reasons for wanting to do so, according to new research.
ANALYSIS
The Government says an audit of adoption records held by the State is of very limited benefit, but recent revelations prove otherwise, writes
LIFESTYLE
Can you no longer put off buying a new laptop or have you been given a gentle hint that a loved one would love a new one for Christmas? has gone through what’s out there and has advice on what laptop will best suit your needs
VIDEO
Over 100 experts, 12 international organisations and more than 120 companies were represented at Beijing’s World Robot Exhibition at the end of November. There they met robots that act just like humans like Xiaolou. The humanoid robot was made by Chinese company Tami Intelligence and it is known for its capacity to interact with people.
VIRAL
Christmas wouldn’t be the same without the terrible festive fashion that comes with it.And that means rummaging through our wardrobes and digging out that obligatory ridiculous-looking Christmas jumper. But if you are feeling particularly Scroogey this year, maybe these offensive jumpers will be right up your street.
We know you don’t need another reason to love elephants but this video is exactly what you need to watch on a rainy Thursday.
TECHNOW
It's Christmas, and that means bountiful treats for one and all.Sony PlayStation is getting on that action with the return of their 12 Deals of Christmas, offering a new discount every 48 hours until the big day itself.
It's hard to know what to think of The Revenant, the follow up film from Birdman director Alejandro G. Inarritu but one thing is certain - it's going to be dripping with atmosphere.
Apple Watch owners will soon be able to purchase official Looney Tunes bands for their wearable.
SHOWBIZ
Alan Hughes has opened up about his feud with impressionist Oliver Callan, insisting he wants to “put it to bed”.
MOST READ RIGHT NOW
Not to send you into a meltdown or anything but octopuses are basically ‘aliens’ – according to scientists. Researchers have found a new map of the octopus genetic code that is so strange that it could be actually be an “alien”.
