Belfast news

• Belfast's Second Annual Menorah Lighting, December 24

  22-12-2016 23:36
  Community members of all faiths are invited to gather for Belfast's second annual Menorah Lighting event on the first night of Chanukah, which falls this year on Saturday, December 24th. The seven-foot tall menorah will be lit in front of the Belfast Post Office at sundown.
  
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• Ivanka Trump incident: Passengers removed from JetBlue flight

  22-12-2016 23:16 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Two men say they were removed from a JetBlue flight after one "expressed displeasure" about flying with Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner.
  
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• Elite League: Belfast Giants 3-0 Edinburgh Capitals

  22-12-2016 22:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Belfast Giants close the gap on Elite League leaders Cardiff Devils to six points with a comfortable 3-0 win over Edinburgh Capitals.
  
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• NI schoolgirl Annie Gibson triumphs at Olympia

  22-12-2016 21:38 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Northern Ireland schoolgirl Annie Gibson wins the Mini Majors Pairs event on her pony Magic at the Olympia Horse Show in London.
  
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• Omagh crash: Car and motorcycle in 'serious' collision on Killyclogher Road

  22-12-2016 20:19 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A car and motorcycle have been involved in a serious collision on the Killyclogher Road in Omagh, Co Tyrone.
  
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• Swaleside prison: Sixty inmates take control of wing

  22-12-2016 20:06 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Sixty inmates have reportedly taken control of a wing at HMP Swaleside on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent.
  
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• Prison guards seek to control HMP Swaleside disturbance

  22-12-2016 20:06 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Prison guards are working to control a disturbance involving 60 inmates at HMP Swaleside.
  
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• Teachers' strikes: Into union members vote over 'insulting' pay offer

  22-12-2016 19:20 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Irish National Teachers' Organisation members vote to begin a series of half-day strikes in schools.
  
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• Dublin shooting: 'Close friend of Gerry 'the Monk' Hutch' shot dead in Clondalkin

  22-12-2016 19:03 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A man shot dead in west Dublin on Thursday evening is understood to be a close friend of Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch.
  
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• Teachers vote to stage half-day strikes in 2017 over pay dispute

  22-12-2016 18:46 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A second teaching union in Northern Ireland has announced strike action amid an ongoing pay dispute.
  
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• RHI scandal: Speaker's position 'untenable' - Sinn Féin

  22-12-2016 17:57 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Assembly Speaker Robin Newton's position is now 'untenable' as a result of the "shambolic" RHI proceedings, Sinn Féin says.
  
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• Colinbrook Park: Pipe bomb explodes in Dunmurry west Belfast

  22-12-2016 17:55 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A pipe bomb exploded after being thrown at a house in the Colinbrook Park area of Poleglass Dunmurry in west Belfast.
  
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• Teachers' strike: INTO members vote in favour of Northern Ireland action - half-day strikes to begin in January

  22-12-2016 17:25 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Teachers' union INTO has voted in favour of strike action in Northern Ireland due to an ongoing pay dispute.
  
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• Lord Mayor sends out a festive message

  22-12-2016 16:53 via youtube.com
  
  
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• Sale agreed for George Best Belfast City Airport

  22-12-2016 16:18 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A deal is agreed between two UK companies for the sale of George Best Belfast City Airport.
  
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• Contaminated blood: Increased financial support for infected patients

  22-12-2016 15:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Northern Ireland patients affected by the contaminated blood scandal are to receive increased financial support.
  
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• League of Ireland Premier Division to be reduced to 10 teams in 2018

  22-12-2016 15:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The League of Ireland Premier Division will be reduced from 12 teams to 10 for the 2018 season, the FAI announces.
  
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• Belfast man accused of knife and fork attack refused bail

  22-12-2016 15:19 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A man accused of using knives and forks to cut a stab victim about the face and neck must spend Christmas in custody, a High Court judge ruled today.
  
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• Attack accused Ards man claims his partner head-butted wall

  22-12-2016 14:59 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A Co Down man allegedly stamped on his partner during a row over cocaine use, the High Court heard today.
  
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• Snow Patrol join chorus of support for The Delays singer Greg Gilbert facing bowel cancer battle

  22-12-2016 14:27 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Snow Patrol have taken to Twitter to send their best wishes to Greg Gilbert - the lead singer of British indie band The Delays - who has been diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer.
  
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• Ulster make six changes as surgery-bound Bundee Aki is ruled out for Connacht

  22-12-2016 13:51 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Ulster make six changes for Friday's Pro12 contest against a Connacht side who will be without star centre Bundee Aki.
  
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• Rents out of reach for many in Rockland area

  22-12-2016 13:32
  The cost to rent an apartment or house in the Rockland area has outstripped what many residents can afford, a state report finds. The Maine State Housing Authority reported that in 2015, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Rockland was $1,007.
  
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• Six changes for Ulster's sell-out Connacht game at Kingspan

  22-12-2016 13:31 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Les Kiss has made six changes to the Ulster starting 15 for Friday's Connacht game at the Kingspan.
  
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• Puppy Gretal dumped at Christmas - charity reminder that 'a dog's for life'

  22-12-2016 13:22 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  The Dogs Trust is urging people to consider the demands a puppy can have on family life with its iconic slogan, 'a dog is for life, not just for Christmas'.
  
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• Sold: George Best Belfast City Airport has a new owner

  22-12-2016 13:15 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  George Best Belfast City Airport has been sold as part of a package of UK and European assets.
  
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• Armagh man loses appeal over £560k tax bill for illegal cigs trade

  22-12-2016 13:04 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  An Armagh man convicted of involvement in the counterfeit cigarette trade has lost a legal battle over a tax bill of up to £560,000.
  
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• Ashers to take gay cake discrimination case to UK Supreme Court

  22-12-2016 12:21 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Ashers Bakery has confirmed it is to take the gay cake discrimination case to the Supreme Court.
  
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• Strictly champ Ore swaps partners for dance show's 2017 tour

  22-12-2016 12:11 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Strictly Come Dancing winner Ore Oduba will be returning to the stage for the show's 2017 tour, this time partnered with dance champion Karen Clifton.
  
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• Belfast Christmas market: No-one else involved in stabbing

  22-12-2016 12:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  No-one else was involved in the injury of a man who suffered stab wounds near the Christmas market in Belfast, police say.
  
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• Storm Barbara set to batter Northern Ireland before Christmas

  22-12-2016 11:40 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A weather warning for wind has been extended to Christmas Day, as forecasters warn travel disruption is likely when Storm Barbara starts to batter Northern Ireland on Friday.
  
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• Linfield set to sign former Nigeria international striker Kevin Amuneke

  22-12-2016 11:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Linfield look likely to sign ex-Nigeria striker Kevin Amuneke following his recent stint with a Northern Ireland junior club.
  
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• Belfast Christmas market lockdown: 'No other person' involved after man found stabbed, say police

  22-12-2016 10:10 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Police say they believe no other person was involved in the incident at Belfast's Christmas market on Wednesday evening.
  
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• Prop banned over 'eye' incident

  22-12-2016 10:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Clermont Auvergne's Etienne Falgoux is banned for seven weeks for making contact with the eye area of Ulster's Luke Marshall.
  
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• Belfast Fashion Spy: Sienna Miller dresses perfectly for her curvy shape

  22-12-2016 10:01 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Our reporter Rachel Dean checks out all the style in Victoria Square, Belfast.
  
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• TeleBest: Party gadgets from Robot Rock and Chocs Away to Trip the light fantastic

  22-12-2016 10:00 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Set the scene for a party to remember this festive period with the help of these nifty gadgets.
  
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• Northern Ireland woman jailed for sexually abusing schoolboys

  22-12-2016 09:10 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A woman who sexually abused two teenage boys has been jailed for 28 months.
  
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• IFA woman awarded £29k over 'sham redundancy policy'

  22-12-2016 09:06 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  The Irish Football Association has been ordered to pay a former commercial manager almost £30,000 in compensation at a tribunal hearing.
  
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• Dumped pups to spend their Christmas in animal hospital

  22-12-2016 09:00 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Three helpless puppies are searching for new homes after they were heartlessly dumped near a play park.
  
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• Relief as meningitis coma teen Ruairi O'Neill wakens

  22-12-2016 08:53 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Prayers were answered yesterday for a Crossmaglen teenager who had fallen into a coma after contracting meningitis.
  
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• £20m of driving and court fines not paid in Northern Ireland

  22-12-2016 08:50 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  The backlog of unpaid fines in Northern Ireland is now almost double the level of penalties issued just this year, according to a damning report from Northern Ireland's official auditor.
  
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• Teaching union ATL rejects strike actionin Northern Ireland schools

  22-12-2016 08:45 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  A teachers' union has voted by a large majority against strike action, it can be revealed.
  
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• Northern Ireland's Disability Living Allowance bill soars to £1bn

  22-12-2016 08:41 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  The cost of Northern Ireland's Disability Living Allowance has risen by 25% in the last five years, new figures reveal.
  
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• Queen and Duke hit by heavy colds

  22-12-2016 08:40 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh have delayed their journey to Norfolk for Christmas after coming down with "heavy colds", Buckingham Palace has said.
  
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• RHI scandal: Axing botched scheme 'could cost £660m in funding'

  22-12-2016 08:31 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Northern Ireland stands to lose a further £600m-plus if Stormont pulls the shutters down on its botched green heating scheme, it has been claimed.
  
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• DUP's social values appealing to Catholic voters, claims Jeffrey Donaldson

  22-12-2016 08:30 via belfasttelegraph.co.uk
  
  Lagan Valley MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson believes more Catholics are turning out to vote for the DUP - because of the party's stance on social issues such as abortion.
  
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• Flying to fame

  22-12-2016 07:09 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A Tyrone woman takes music industry by storm thanks to social media and help from one of Ireland's most prolific songwriters.
  
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• Welcoming a good old dog into our lives

  22-12-2016 03:27
  
  Back in May, after we made the sad decision to say goodbye to our lovely, 16-year-old lab-mix dog, Lucy , Douglas and I agreed to take a break from dog ownership. Although both of us have loved dogs all our lives and welcomed many of them into our respective families, it seemed like a good time to be deliberate about adopting another pup.
  
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