Thursday’s Top Stories: First Irish citizens escape Gaza conflict, Irish firm accused of being part of network bringing sensitive microchip tech to Russia

News Snapshot:

The first Irish citizens to escape from Gaza since war erupted there a month ago crossed into Egypt on Wednesday amid hopes that more will be able to follow in the coming days. Tánaiste Micheál Martin, who travelled to Egypt as part of intense diplomatic efforts and will visit Israel and Palestine on Thursday, confirmed that 23 Irish citizens and their dependents exited Gaza on Wednesday and were received at the Rafah crossing by a team from the embassy in Cairo. With transfers from Palestinian territory into Egypt said to be taking as long as 10 hours, the Irish nationals...