DUBLIN: An exit poll in Ireland’s parliamentary election released late Friday suggests the three biggest parties have won roughly equal shares and the country is headed for another coalition government.
A poll released as voting ended at 10 p.m. (2200GMT) said center-right party Fine Gael was the first choice of 21 percent of voters, with its center-right coalition partner in the outgoing government, Fianna Fail at 19.5 percent. Left-of-center opposition Sinn Fein was at 21.1 percent in the poll.
Pollster Ipsos B&A asked 5,018 voters across the country how they had cast their ballots. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.4 percentage points.
The figures only give an indication and don’t reveal which parties will form the next government. Counting of ballots starts Saturday morning and because Ireland uses a complex system of proportional representation known as the single transferrable vote, it can take between several hours and several days for full results to be known.
The result will show whether Ireland bucks the global trend of incumbents being ousted by disgruntled voters after years of pandemic, international instability and a cost-of-living pressures.
Sinn Fein, which had urged people to vote for change, hailed the result.
“There is every chance that Sinn Fein will emerge from these elections as the largest political party,” Sinn Fein director of elections Matt Carthy told broadcaster RTE.
Though Sinn Fein, which aims to reunite Northern Ireland with the independent Republic of Ireland, could become the largest party in the 174-seat Dail, the lower house of parliament, it may struggle to get enough coalition partners to form a government. Both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have refused to form alliances with it.
Here’s a look at the parties, the issues and the likely outcome.
Who’s running?
The outgoing government was led by the two parties who have dominated Irish politics for the past century: Fine Gael and Fianna Fail. They have similar center-right policies but are longtime rivals with origins on opposing sides of Ireland’s 1920s civil war.
After the 2020 election ended in a virtual dead heat they formed a coalition, agreeing to share Cabinet posts and take turns as taoiseach, or prime minister. Fianna Fail leader Micheál Martin served as premier for the first half of the term and was replaced by Fine Gael’s Leo Varadkar in December 2022. Varadkar unexpectedly stepped down in March, passing the job to current Taoiseach Simon Harris.
Opposition party Sinn Fein achieved a stunning breakthrough in the 2020 election, topping the popular vote, but was shut out of government because Fianna Fail and Fine Gael refused to work with it, citing its leftist policies and historic ties with militant group the Irish Republican Army during three decades of violence in Northern Ireland.
Under Ireland’s system of proportional representation, each of the 43 constituencies elects multiple lawmakers, with voters ranking their preferences. That makes it relatively easy for smaller parties and independent candidates with a strong local following to gain seats.
This election includes a large crop of independent candidates, ranging from local campaigners to far-right activists and reputed crime boss Gerry “the Monk” Hutch.
What are the main issues?
As in many other countries, the cost of living — especially housing — has dominated the campaign. Ireland has an acute housing shortage, the legacy of failing to build enough new homes during the country’s “Celtic Tiger” boom years and the economic slump that followed the 2008 global financial crisis.
“There was not building during the crisis, and when the crisis receded, offices and hotels were built first,” said John-Mark McCafferty, chief executive of housing and homelessness charity Threshold.
The result is soaring house prices, rising rents and growing homelessness.
After a decade of economic growth, McCafferty said “Ireland has resources” — not least 13 billion euros ($13.6 billion) in back taxes the European Union has ordered Apple to pay it — “but it is trying to address big historic infrastructural deficits.”
Tangled up with the housing issue is immigration, a fairly recent challenge to a country long defined by emigration. Recent arrivals include more than 100,000 Ukrainians displaced by war and thousands of people fleeing poverty and conflict in the Middle East and Africa.
This country of 5.4 million has struggled to house all the asylum-seekers, leading to tent camps and makeshift accommodation centers that have attracted tension and protests. A stabbing attack on children outside a Dublin school a year ago, in which an Algerian man has been charged, sparked the worst rioting Ireland had seen in decades.
Unlike many European countries, Ireland does not have a significant far-right party, but far-right voices on social media seek to drum up hostility to migrants, and anti-immigrant independent candidates are hoping for election in several districts. The issue appears to be hitting support for Sinn Fein, as working-class supporters bristled at its pro-immigration policies.
What’s the likely outcome?
The exit poll bears out earlier opinion poll findings that voters’ support is split widely among Fine Gael, Fianna Fail, Sinn Fein, several smaller parties and an assortment of independents.
Before polling day, analysts said the most likely outcome is another Fine Gael-Fianna Fail coalition, possibly with a smaller party or a clutch of independents as kingmakers. That remains a likely option.
“It’s just a question of which minor group is going to be the group that supports the government this time,” said Eoin O’Malley, a political scientist at Dublin City University. “Coalition-forming is about putting a hue on what is essentially the same middle-of-the-road government every time.”
Ireland headed for coalition government following parliamentary election, exit poll suggests
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Ireland headed for coalition government following parliamentary election, exit poll suggests
Over 7,000 migrants detained in Greece as Crete struggles with Libya arrivals
- Greece implements emergency measures to address a surge in Mediterranean crossings from Libya as authorities detained over 7,000 migrants in the past 10 days
- Prime minister announced that Greece would suspend asylum processing for migrants arriving by sea from North Africa for three months
LAVRIO: More than 500 migrants arrived at the port of Lavrio near Athens on Thursday after being intercepted south of the island of Crete, as Greece implements emergency measures to address a surge in Mediterranean crossings from Libya.
The migrants, consisting mostly of young men, were transferred overnight aboard a bulk carrier after their fishing trawler was intercepted by Greek authorities. Service vessels helped bring them ashore at the mainland port. They will be sent to detention facilities near the capital.
More than 200 migrants were brought to the port of Piraeus, also near Athens, in separate transfers from Crete. The transfers to the mainland were ordered because makeshift reception centers on Crete have reached capacity, with around 500 new arrivals per day on the Mediterranean island since the weekend.
We can no longer accept migration flows from North Africa. People there need to think twice before deciding to pay a large sum of money to come to our country
Manos Logothetis, ministry of migration
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced Wednesday that Greece would suspend asylum processing for migrants arriving by sea from North Africa for three months. The new measures are due to be voted on in parliament on Thursday as an emergency amendment.
“This is an extreme and urgent situation, and we are taking extraordinary steps, ones that are difficult, tough, and strict. But they send a clear message,” Manos Logothetis, secretary-general at the ministry of migration, told state-run television.
“These measures are a clear statement from the Greek government — and by extension, from Europe — that we can no longer accept migration flows from North Africa,” he said. “People there need to think twice before deciding to pay a large sum of money to come to our country.”
Logothetis said that Greece backed EU initiatives linking financial aid to African countries to their willingness to receive their citizens deported or agreeing to voluntary repatriation from Europe.
Greece says more than 7,000 migrants have been detained over the past 10 days after traveling from Libya to Crete — a surge that occurred despite an overall drop in illegal migration to Europe. The European Union’s border protection agency, Frontex, on Thursday reported that irregular crossings into the EU dropped by 20 percent in first half of 2025 on an annual basis though increases were recorded in parts of the Mediterranean.
The crisis on Crete coincided with a diplomatic spat between the European Union and Libya over migration cooperation. EU officials earlier this week were turned away from eastern Libya following an apparent disagreement on the format of talks planned on curbing crossings.
Authorities on Crete are struggling to provide basic services, using temporary facilities to house migrants, primarily from Somalia, Sudan, Egypt and Morocco, according to island officials. The New York-based aid organization International Rescue Committee criticized asylum pause in Greece. “Seeking refuge is a human right; preventing people from doing so is both illegal and inhumane,” the group’s Martha Roussou said. “People fleeing conflict and disaster must be treated with dignity and provided fair and lawful access to asylum procedures — not detained or turned away.”
Iran threats in UK ‘significantly increased’: Intel watchdog
- UK parliamentary committee blames Iran for at least 15 attempts to kill or kidnap British-based individuals since 2022
- Tehran swiftly rejected the 'unfounded, politically motivated and hostile allegations'
LONDON: A UK parliamentary committee on Thursday blamed Iran for at least 15 attempts to kill or kidnap British-based individuals since 2022, saying the threat from Iran had “significantly increased.”
London’s response has been too focused on “crisis management,” said parliament’s intelligence and security committee, with concerns over Iran’s nuclear program dominating their attention too much.
Tehran swiftly issued a “categorical rejection of the unfounded, politically motivated and hostile allegations.”
The committee’s claims were “baseless, irresponsible, and reflective of a broader pattern of distortion intended to malign Iran’s legitimate regional and national interests,” said its London embassy.
The report comes after growing alarm in Britain at alleged Iranian targeting of dissidents, media organizations and journalists in the UK, including accusations of physical attacks.
Iran in March became the first country to be placed on an enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, which aims to boost Britain’s national security against covert foreign influences.
It requires all persons working inside the country for Iran, its intelligence services or the Revolutionary Guard to register on a new list or face jail.
“Iran poses a wide-ranging, persistent and unpredictable threat to the UK, UK nationals, and UK interests,” Kevan Jones, chairman of the watchdog committee, said in the report’s conclusions.
“Iran has a high appetite for risk when conducting offensive activity and its intelligence services are ferociously well-resourced with significant areas of asymmetric strength.”
Jones said it bolstered this through proxy groups, “including criminal networks, militant and terrorist organizations, and private cyber actors” to allow for deniability.
His committee’s report said that while Iran’s UK activity “appears to be less strategic and on a smaller scale than Russia and China,” it “should not be underestimated.”
The physical threat posed had “significantly increased” in pace and volume, and was “focused acutely on dissidents and other opponents of the regime” as well as Jewish and Israeli interests in the UK, it said.
“The Iranian Intelligence Services have shown that they are willing and able — often through third-party agents — to attempt assassination within the UK, and kidnap from the UK,” the report said.
“There have been at least 15 attempts at murder or kidnap against British nationals or UK-based individuals since the beginning of 2022.”
Similarly, security minister Dan Jarvis said in March Britain’s MI5 domestic intelligence service had tallied 20 Iran-backed plots “presenting potentially lethal threats to British citizens and UK residents.”
The watchdog committee took evidence for two years from August 2021 for its report, a period which saw Tehran implicated in a plot to kill two London-based Iran International television anchors.
In March last year one of the Persian-language outlet’s journalists was stabbed outside his London home.
Two Romanian men have been charged in relation to the attack and face extradition to the UK to stand trial.
The counter-terrorism unit of London’s Metropolitan Police led the investigation. Iran’s charge d’affaires in the UK has said that the Tehran authorities “deny any link” to the incident.
Filipinos push back against growing Israeli presence on popular tourist island
- Siargao is a premier surfing site and one of the Philippines’ top tourist destinations
- Facebook users accuse Israeli tourists of disrespecting local rules, harassing residents
MANILA: Concerns over the presence of Israeli visitors are growing on a southern Philippine island, locals say, as they protest plans to establish an Israeli community center amid fears of displacement and reports of tourist misconduct.
Siargao — a resort island off Surigao del Norte province in Mindanao — is the Philippines’ premier surfing site and one of the country’s top tourist destinations.
It has lately become popular among Israelis, whose arrival over the past few months has resulted in numerous complaints. Siargao-based singer and community organizer Maria Lalaine Tokong went viral last week when she highlighted that many of the tourists were “disregarding the culture, the customs,” of the place.
“We are feeling less at home in our home,” she wrote. “I speak up because I refuse to let our identity, our peace, and our safety be erased.”
Tokong’s post has since resulted in tens of thousands of interactions, with Filipinos sharing similar concerns.
It came against the backdrop of Israeli plans to open a Chabad house — a Jewish community center and place of worship — on the island. The plans have been opposed by the local community, which met Israeli embassy representatives in May.
“We don’t want it,” Tokong told Arab News. “When we talked about the cultural center with the Israeli embassy, we specifically told them, ‘What’s the purpose?’ We already have an education system. We already have a church here.”
With new officials taking office following recent elections, she is now preparing with other community members to take the case forward with the local administration.
In April, Project Paradise, a Siargao-based non-governmental organization, held a town hall meeting with residents and local business owners to gather their complaints.
“We received reports primarily regarding disrespect for local customs and values — ranging from noise disturbances, reckless driving, disregard for modesty in dress in rural areas, to environmental irresponsibility such as leaving trash on beaches or protected areas,” Sofia Nicole de Asis, president of Project Paradise, told Arab News.
While De Asis said that the incidents “are not isolated to any one group, and our stance has always been that misconduct is a behavioral issue, not a nationality-based one,” members of the Facebook group Siargao Business Classified 2.0 have been reporting Israeli tourists calling local staff “slaves,” illegally raising their flags on boats, trashing local homestays, violating the island’s no-noise curfew past midnight, and verbally and physically assaulting locals.
“They have no right to put up a cultural center as they have no roots or connection to Filipinos’ history. ‘Free Palestine’ today, so we won’t be shouting ‘Free Siargao’ tomorrow,” one user wrote, as others complained over inaction from the island’s administration.
“These people were welcomed into our country and treated with genuine hospitality, yet they choose to disregard our laws and disrespect our people and communities. The local government of Siargao should strictly enforce all local rules and regulations,” another user said.
“For the local government in Siargao, you better act. Remember you’re still part of the Philippines, you might one day be surprised that Siargao is now ‘the promised land,’” another commented.
Officials in General Luna, one of the main towns on Siargao, did not respond to requests for comment from Arab News.
UK students could face jail over support for banned Palestine Action
- Ex-govt advisor urges universities to warn students of penalties for supporting illegal organizations
- Palestine Action proscribed as terrorist group after members broke into Royal Air Force base last month
LONDON: University students in the UK face jail if they support the group Palestine Action, the former government advisor on political violence and disruption has warned.
Lord Walney, who wrote a report in 2024 advising that the organization be proscribed, said vice-chancellors should let students know the penalties that could be incurred by promoting the group’s policies, displaying its symbols or voicing support for it.
Palestine Action was declared a terrorist organization earlier this month after activists filmed themselves breaking into a Royal Air Force base in England.
On Monday, 29 people were arrested for supporting it at a protest in Westminster, with some holding placards stating: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
Penalties for membership of, or eliciting support for, proscribed groups in the UK include a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.
Protests in support of the Palestinian cause and against Israel’s war in Gaza have been frequent features across numerous university campuses in the UK since the outbreak of hostilities in October 2023.
In a letter to Vivienne Stern, CEO of Universities UK — a body representing 142 higher education establishments — Walney claimed there was a “clear danger that individuals may be unwittingly lured into expressing support for an entity whose methods are not only criminal, but now formally recognised as terrorism,” and “Universities UK has an important role to play in protecting both freedom of expression and student welfare within the bounds of the law.”
He added: “Palestine Action’s deliberate strategy has long involved drawing students into criminal activity under the guise of legitimate protest, preying on the understandable sympathy for Palestinians felt by large numbers of young people to find recruits.
“With its formal proscription, the legal threshold has shifted: expressions of support, including wearing insignia, arranging meetings, or promoting the group’s activities — whether knowingly or through naivety — now risk serious sanction with students at risk of acquiring a criminal record for a terror offence.
“This risk clearly exists whatever any individual may think of the government’s decision to proscribe Palestine Action.
“My view is that the group’s systematic campaign of sabotage justifies proscription, given the fact that property damage is included in the legal definition of terrorism.”
UUK told The Times that it had “written to our member vice-chancellors to alert them to the fact that Palestine Action has been proscribed as a terrorist organisation under the Terrorism Act 2000, effective from Saturday July 5, and to their obligation to ensure that staff and students are aware of this.”
A British F35 fighter jet stranded in India may finally fly back home after inspiring memes
- Jet has been stranded at airport in southern Kerala state due to technical snag, is being repaired by UK engineers
- One of the memes shows cartoon in which plane is enjoying snacks with group f locals against a scenic background
NEW DELHI: A British F-35B fighter jet stranded at an Indian airport for nearly a month, sparking memes and cartoons on social media, is expected to fly back home as early as next week, Indian officials said.
The stealth fighter, one of the world’s most advanced and costing around $115 million, is stranded at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in the southern state of Kerala due to a technical snag and is being repaired by UK engineers, officials said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they aren’t authorized to speak to the media.
The jet was on a regular sortie in the Arabian Sea last month when it ran into bad weather and couldn’t return to the Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier, the HMS Prince of Wales, officials said.
The aircraft was then diverted to Thiruvananthapuram, where it landed safely on June 14. Officials said engineers hope to repair the plane in the next few days before it could fly back to UK sometime next week.
The stranded military aircraft, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, has triggered A.I.-generated memes in India. In a social media post, the tourism department of Kerala showed the aircraft on the tarmac surrounded by coconut trees and posting a fictitious five-star review.
“Kerala is such an amazing place, I don’t want to leave. Definitely recommend,” it said.
The state’s top official at the tourism department, K. Biju, said the post was put out in “good humor.”
“It was our way to appreciate and thank the Brits who are the biggest inbound visitors to Kerala for tourism,” said Biju.
Another cartoon posted on X showed the plane enjoying snacks with a group of locals against a scenic background.
The British High Commission confirmed to The Associated Press that a UK engineering team has been deployed to “assess and repair” the aircraft.
There has been speculation in India that if the engineers fail to rectify the aircraft, it could be partially dismantled and transported in a cargo plane. The UK’s Ministry of Defense dismissed the speculation in an emailed statement.
