EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories, just a little before nine, that you need to know with your morning coffee.

1. #FLIGHT MH370 The mystery of what happened to the missing Malaysian Airlines jet has deepened as authorities now say that it is likely it was deliberately flown off course. The plane was flown for hours after dropping off primary radar.

2. #AMBULANCES New data shows that ambulance crews in some areas reach fewer than half of life-threatening cases within the target time. In the southeast region last December, just 45 per cent of 999 calls relating to cardiac or respiratory arrest were responded to within 19 minutes, says the Irish Times.

3. #SHAMROCKS Taoiseach Enda Kenny handed over shamrocks to US President Barack Obama at the traditional pre-St Patrick’s Day shamrock ceremony yesterday. At the event, they discussed Ireland’s economic progress, global affairs, undocumented Irish immigrants … and Brian O’Driscoll.

4. #EXPLOSION Police officers in Belfast escaped serious injury after an explosive device was thrown at their vehicle near the City Cemetery. The incident occurred shortly before 10.30pm last night, close to the PSNI officers’ vehicle on the Falls Road.

5. #JET SETTER Justice Minister Alan Shatter was “reprimanded” over breaking Cabinet rules on the use of a government jet, the Irish Independent says. Shatter booked the Learjet for a return trip from Brussels without first getting approval from Enda Kenny’s office.

6. #UKRAINE Two people have been killed in clashes that broke out between pro-Moscow and pro-Kiev supporters in Kharkiv, Ukraine. Ukrainian nationalists opened fire on a group of men trying to storm their headquarters in the city last night.

7. #SYRIA Today marks three years since the civil war in Syria began. With tens of thousands dead in the ensuing violence, there is no end in sight to the unrest.

8. #SIPTU The damages Aer Lingus is seeking from SIPTU could reach up to €3million, the Irish Independent reports. The action is being taken over losses the airline claims it incurred due to strike notice that was called off.

9. #PRIDE Are you proud to be Irish? According to a new Ipsos MRBI poll in the Irish Times, 58 per cent of people feel proud to be Irish on St Patrick’s Day. Older people aged over 65 are also more likely to be proud of their national identity than younger people.