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

1. #PASSPORTS: Gangland criminals are using drug addicts to acquire fraudulent passports which the criminals are then using to escape Ireland undetected, TheJournal.ie has learned.

2. #GERMANY: Angela Merkel will lead Germany once more following national elections, but the far-right AfD party has entered politics for the first time.

3. #WEATHER: A national fog warning is in place for across the country.

4. #NFL: A wave of protests swept across the NFL yesterday, with players kneeling during the national anthem in defiance of President Donald Trump’s call for players to be fired.

5. #TRAVEL BAN: The US government has announced new travel restrictions affecting people from eight countries (The Guardian).

6. #BREXIT: An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will travel to London today to meet UK Prime Minister Theresa May.

7. #HOUSE: A new house price survey has found that the cost of an average three-bed semi-detached house nationally has risen by 3.1% to €221,843 since June.

8. #MISSING: Dublin took home the ladies All-Ireland football title yesterday, in front of record attendance at Croke Park.

9. #DEATH: A man in his 40s has died following a fatal motorbike crash last night in Kildare.