EVERY MORNING,TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories you need to know as you kick off your day.

1. #DRUGS: Gardaí in Kildare have seized up to €5.5 million worth of heroin and cocaine as part of an ongoing investigation. Two men in their 30s have been arrested and are being held at Naas Garda station. Follow up searches in Palmerstown and Cellbridge resulted in seizures of cocaine, cannabis herb and heroin worth an estimated 1.25 million.

2. #HORSE MEAT: ABP Food Group, which owns two of the companies involved in the horse meat controversy has said this morning that it has narrowed its investigation down to two suppliers. Production at its Silvercrest plant in Monaghan has been suspended for several days to complete the sanitation process.

3. #LUAS: A Luas and a car have collided at Jervis St this morning. It is not believed that there were any injuries, but gardaí and emergency services are currently on the scene. Swift’s Row is closed as a result of the incident, and delays to Red Line Luas services are to be expected.

4. #SAVITA: An inquest into the death of Savita Halappanavar is due to begin in Galway this morning, RTÉ reports.  Yesterday RTÉ News reported that medical records show that the woman did request a termination to her pregnancy. Speaking to TheJournal.ie earlier this month, coroner Dr Ciaran MacLoughlin said the inquest would be “open and transparent”.

5. #JILL MEAGHER: The man accused of the rape and murder of Irish woman Jill Meagher appeared before Melbourne Magistrates’ Court earlier today by video link. The Herald Sun reports that Adrian Ernest Bayley will contest the charges against him. His two-day committal hearing will take place on March 12 and 13.

6. #WEATHER: Irish Rail has said that the line between Dalkey and Dun Laoghaire are closed as work is ongoing to repair a fault in power lines caused by a fallen tree. In Wicklow, snow showers in Roundwood, Laragh, Annamoue and Aughrim. The Wicklow Gap and Sally Gap are impassible due to heavy snow.

7. #ALGERIA: The hostage situation at an Algerian gas facility, taken over by Islamist militants, is still ongoing this morning, BBC reports. Yesterday Irish man Stephen McFaul, one of the hostages, was released and is due to return to Ireland today. A number of militants and hostages remain missing and there are conflicting reports about the number of casualties.

8. #HAND LUGGAGE: MEPs in Brussels have called on the European Commission to draft rules for hand luggage allowance to protect the rights of air passengers. British MEP Brian Simpson said there is “an inconsistency” in the way that airlines charge for baggage and said some airlines “look to charge for everything”.

9. #ARMSTRONG: Lance Armstrong has admitted to doping in an interview with chat show host Oprah Winfrey. The cyclist said he did not feel he was cheating at the time but accepted that all of the blame should lie with him and said he was there to say he was sorry. If you missed the interview, TheScore.ie have a blow-by-blow account of how it happened.

Comments on this article are closed as court proceedings in one of the stories are ongoing.