The first votes have been cast in what has been described as a potentially seismic Stormont Assembly election in Northern Ireland.

A swimming coach has been arrested as part of an investigation into the alleged sexual exploitation of children in the sport.

A Russian-announced ceasefire was due to begin today at the besieged steel plant in the devastated Ukrainian city of Mariupol, to allow civilians to flee even as its defenders vowed to fight to the end.

Millions of people in Beijing returned to work this morning, many remotely, with scores of subway stations shut after a national holiday muted by the coronavirus curbs.

A Virgin Atlantic aircraft turned back to Heathrow earlier this week after it emerged the first officer had not completed his final flying test.

The President of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has warned of a rise in assaults on nurses, saying overcrowding in hospitals guarantees "adverse reactions".

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has cast his vote in the local elections taking place across England, Scotland and Wales, but was tight-lipped about an election in which his party is predicted to lose hundreds of council seats.

The third long-duration team of astronauts launched by SpaceX to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA departed the orbiting outpost early this morning to begin their descent back to Earth, capping a six-month science mission.

Colombia has extradited Dairo Antonio Usaga, known as 'Otoniel', an accused drug trafficker and leader of the Clan del Golfo criminal group to the United States, President Ivan Duque has said.

A man in his 20s is due in court this morning charged in connection with the fatal assault of another man in Kilkenny on Tuesday.

Russia's blockade of Ukraine's seaports has forced the country's exporters to look for alternatives to move their cargo, transforming the city of Constanta in Romania into a vital maritime export hub.

Follow the developments on day 71 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Clashes erupted between Israelis and Palestinians at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound today, after a 10-day cooling of tensions at the holy site, Israeli police said.

More than 1,000 people were taken to hospital with respiratory ailments due to a sandstorm in Iraq, the seventh to hit the country in the past month, state media said.

Australia will respond calmly to the Solomon Islands after it signed a security pact with China, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said, dismissing a furious response by the leader of the Pacific nation to Western criticism of the deal.

Voting is under way in the Northern Ireland Assembly election and RTÉ will have comprehensive coverage of the results from tomorrow, Friday 6 May, and throughout the weekend across all channels.

A Russia-based Irish national has been included on a list of over 30 people targeted by UK sanctions.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has told Fianna Fáil TDs and senators tonight that discussions on the new National Maternity Hospital "need to be brought to a conclusion".

Aquaman actress Amber Heard choked back tears on Wednesday as she told a Virginia jury that her ex-husband Johnny Depp physically abused her multiple times, starting when he slapped her after she laughed at the writing on one of his tattoos.

Ukraine has said that EU countries blocking an embargo on imports of Russian oil would be complicit in crimes committed by Russian troops on Ukrainian territory by funding Moscow's military.