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Lucy Kennedy has said Christmas in her Dublin house is always manic with her three children, just like most households in Ireland. The TV and radio presenter and author got a break from cooking this year though as she and her husband Richie and their trio, Jack, Holly and Jess, celebrated Christmas Day at her sister's house nearby. Read more: Lucy Kennedy explains why she never returned to The Six O’Clock Show after welcoming daughter Jess Read more: Lucy Kennedy on what makes her marriage to Richie work, how they met and life at home in Dublin Lucy told RSVP Live: "Christmas is manic in our house because we have children. "There is always a fight coming down the stairs over who can open their stocking first and who will help Riley open hers. It is exactly like every other household in Ireland. "I pray that they stay in bed until 7am. As I try to make a cup of tea, everyone is chattering while they open their stocking." She said: "Then there is the chill out stage where everyone plays with what they have before we have a nice brekkie, usually a fry up." Lucy and her family had the best of both worlds this year, enjoying Christmas near their Dublin home without the hassle of cooking and cleaning. She said: "Last year we celebrated Christmas at our house, but this year it’s in my sister Anna’s house with her family. "They only live up the road, so we can walk up to them and walk home again. "It is a lot more work when you are hosting, so it is nice to swap it every second year. We like to take it in turns." Lucy has some touching festive traditions she has carried since her childhood. She said: "Santa still fills my stocking from when I was a little girl. My mum was a dress designer, she is retired. "When we were little she made us these huge big red stockings. She did the same for all of her grandchildren. I love seeing them using the same stockings that I used when I was growing up. "We all have our names on them and we lay them out on the couch. I have always tried to keep that tradition going.Bethlehem marks a second subdued Christmas Eve during the war in Gaza BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Bethlehem is marking another somber Christmas Eve under the shadow of war in Gaza. Manger Square lacked its usual festive lights and crowds of tourists on Tuesday. Instead, the area outside the Nativity Church was quiet. The church was built atop the spot where Jesus is believed to have been born. The war, the violence in the occupied West Bank it has spurred and the lack of festivities has deeply hurt Bethlehem's economy. The town relies heavily on Christmas tourism. The economy in the West Bank was already reeling because of restrictions placed on laborers preventing them from entering Israel during the war. Pope Francis kicks off a yearlong Jubilee that will test his stamina and Rome's patience VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has opened the great Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica. The ceremony kicks off the 2025 Holy Year. It's a celebration of the Catholic Church that is expected to draw some 32 million pilgrims to Rome. And it will test the pope’s stamina and the ability of the Eternal City to welcome them. This begins the Christmas Eve Mass. The ceremony inaugurates the once-every-25-year tradition of a Jubilee. Francis has dedicated the 2025 Jubilee to the theme of hope. Trump vows to pursue executions after Biden commutes most of federal death row FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump says he'll “vigorously pursue” capital punishment after President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of most people on federal death row partly to stop Trump from pushing forward their executions. Trump criticized Biden’s decision on Monday to change the sentences of 37 of the 40 condemned people to life in prison without parole. Trump said that he will direct the Department of Justice to pursue the death penalty “as soon as I am inaugurated.” Trump was vague on what specific actions he may take. 21 dead as Mozambique erupts in violence after election court ruling MAPUTO, Mozambique (AP) — Violence that engulfed Mozambique after the country’s highest court confirmed ruling party presidential candidate Daniel Chapo as the winner of disputed Oct. 9 elections has killed at least 21 people, including two police officers. Mozambique Interior Minister Pascoal Ronda told a news conference in Maputo late Tuesday that a wave of violence and looting was sparked by the court’s announcement a day earlier. He said it was led by mostly youthful supporters of losing candidate Venancio Mondlane, who received 24% of the vote, second to Chapo, who got 65%. Spain's monarch pays tribute to the victims of Valencia floods in his Christmas Eve speech MADRID (AP) — Spanish King Felipe VI has used his traditional Christmas Eve speech to remember the victims of the catastrophic Valencia flash floods. He also urged the country to remain calm despite public debates around hot-button issues such as immigration and housing affordability. Felipe acknowledged the frustration of many of the flood victims at the government's handling of the disaster in a pre-recorded speech that usually reviews the year’s most relevant issues. He also addressed immigration and the country’s housing crunch and high rents, which have become leading concerns in the southern European Union country that is the eurozone's fourth-largest economy. The speech was broadcast on Tuesday. Prosecutors find workers in 'slavery like' conditions at Chinese car company site in Brazil RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) — A task force led by Brazilian prosecutors says it has rescued 163 Chinese nationals working in “slavery-like” conditions at a construction site in northeastern Brazil, where Chinese electric vehicle company BYD is building a factory. The Labor Prosecutor’s Office released videos of the dorms where the construction workers were staying, which showed beds with no mattresses and rooms without any place for the workers to store their personal belongings. In a statement issued Monday, the prosecutor’s office said the workers had been hired in China by Jinjian Group, one of the contractors on the site, which is located in Camaçari, a city in the Salvador metropolitan region. Haiti gangs fire on journalists covering a planned hospital reopening, leaving casualties PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Suspected gang members have opened fire on journalists in Haiti’s capital as they were covering the attempted reopening of the country’s largest hospital, wounding or killing an unknown number of people. The country's interim president, Leslie Voltaire, said in an address to the nation that journalists and police were among the victims of the vicious Christmas Eve attack. He did not specify how many casualties there were, or give a breakdown for the dead or wounded. Radio Télé Métronome said earlier on Tuesday that seven journalists and two police officers were wounded in the shooting. Street gangs have taken over an estimated 85% of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. Heavy travel day starts with brief grounding of all American Airlines flights WASHINGTON (AP) — American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive. Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne Tuesday about an hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop, which prevented planes from taking off. American said in an email that the problem was caused by vendor technology in its flight operating system. Aviation analytics company Cirium said flights were delayed across American’s major hubs, with only 37% leaving on time. Nineteen flights were cancelled. NFL players who use platform to share their faith say it's their duty to spread their love of Jesus ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — Jake Bates was standing on the turf in his hometown of Houston when asked to reflect on an unlikely journey from learning how to sell bricks to making game-winning kicks for the Detroit Lions. Bates used his platform as an NFL player to spread his love of Jesus. A month later, Bates told The Associated Press it is a duty to share his faith. The NFL is filled with players and coaches who feel the same way, such as Houston's C.J. Stroud, Atlanta's Kirk Cousins, and Lamar Jackson and John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens. Stunning photos show lava erupting from Hawaii's Kilauea volcano HONOLULU (AP) — Lava is erupting from Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano for the second straight day. The eruption has stayed within Kilauea’s summit caldera inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and no homes are threatened. Molten rock began spewing out of the volcano before dawn on Monday when fissures opened in the caldera floor and shot lava high into the air. It then oozed across the caldera floor. Scientists expect activity to fluctuate in coming days. The lava paused Monday afternoon but fountains reemerged Tuesday morning. The eruption has occurred in an area that’s been closed to the public since 2007 due to hazards including crater wall instability and rockfalls.
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