Day: Jan 1, 2026

Plugging in a microwave does not make a room a flat, a judge has ruled

UK: Judge Johns KC – “A Room Cannot Be Turned into a Flat Simply by Plugging in a Microwave!” (1.1.2026)

The owners also challenged that decision, but judges at another tribunal ruled in the council’s favour again, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Judge Johns KC said a room could not “be turned into a flat simply by plugging in a microwave.”

He added there was “no relevant storage, no food preparation area” and that planning laws were supposed to “protect people in the occupation of their homes, not to encourage them to cook their own meals”.

Despite the second rejection, the company has now sought to appeal the verdict.

A hotel spokesman said the building stopped housing homeless people about two years ago.

Paul Wells, the council’s Conservative portfolio holder for licensing, said the authority was “delighted” with the ruling, which “sets a precedent for all local authorities that want to improve housing standards for residents”.

“Our teams worked exceptionally hard to achieve this result and deserve real credit,” he added.

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Photogrammetry map of Brusselstown Ring showing locations of what may be roundhouse footprints!

Eire: Scientists Unearth Ireland’s Largest Prehistoric Hillfort Settlement! (1.1.2026)

Additional survey work revealed a unique structure near one of the trenches. The flat interior outlined by large stones, uncommon for roundhouses at the site, made it unlikely to be a prehistoric roundhouse itself. From previous surveys, it was known that a stream flowed into the structure from a rocky outcrop uphill.

Given its shape and size, it is hypothesized that this might be a Bronze and Iron Age water cistern like those found elsewhere in Europe. Because Brusselstown Hill would have had to accommodate a large population, a source of freshwater would make sense. If further investigations confirm the structure to be a water cistern, it would represent the first of its kind in an Irish hillfort.

More research is needed to better understand the extent and nature of Brusselstown Hill’s potential water cistern, establishing the nature and chronology of the enclosing elements and better understanding how and why the settlement may have been abandoned.

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Image of the Russian Volunteer Army in 2023. /AFP-Yonhap

Chosun Daily: Denis Kapustin [“White Rex”] – Commander of Fascist “Russian Volunteer Corps” – Killed by Drone in Neo-Nazi Ukraine! (1.1.2026)

Opposing Russia’s multiculturalization due to the invasion of Ukraine and aiming to ‘overthrow the Putin regime,’ he organized the RVC in August 2022 and began an armed struggle. The group, which displays the slogan “Only our victory brings peace to Russia” on its website, led surprise invasions into the Russian mainland regions of Bryansk and Belgorod across the Ukrainian border in 2023 and 2024. They have conducted regular warfare against Russian forces in major battlegrounds such as Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, supported by Ukraine’s Defense Ministry-affiliated intelligence agency (GUR).

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