NEED TO CATCH up? TheJournal.ie brings you a round-up of today’s news.

IRELAND

Scenes on the opening day of the BT Young Scientist Exhibition in the RDS in Dublin. RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

• The solicitor of alleged so-called Islamic State-member Lisa Smith has asked for the terrorism charge against her to be dropped.
• Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan said he was shocked by the “nastiness and vitriol” he received as a result of the planned RIC commemoration.
• Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, meanwhile, said the chance of a united Ireland is a “little bit further away” following the fall out over the controversial commemoration.
• Six food businesses were ordered to close last month after inspectors with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) found them to be in breach of food safety legislation.
• The Oireachtas spent more than €207,000 on overseas travel for TDs and senators in the last 10 months.
• Two men were arrested in Monaghan as part of a garda investigation into a mini bus that was stolen from Dublin Airport in the early hours this morning, and the suspected false imprisonment of three passengers aboard the bus. 
• A new tranche of Irish civil records was made available online to members of the public from today.
• The funeral mass of murdered man Frankie Dunne heard how he had many close friends and was “a gentle soul”. 

THE WORLD 

Dancers from the Edinburgh Chinese Education Centre perform a Chinese Dragon dance to launch the 2020 Chinese New Year celebrations and the Year of the Rat on Calton Hill, Edinburgh. PA Wire / PA Images PA Wire / PA Images / PA Images

#UNITED STATES: US President Donald Trump said Iran “must abandon” its nuclear ambitions and that sanctions will remain in place after Iran’s missile attack on Iraqi bases housing US and other foreign troops.

#AIR CRASH: Black Boxes from the Ukranian airliner that crashed after takeoff in Iran killing all 176 on board have been recovered but authorities say they will not hand them to US investigators.

#THE ROYALS: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced they are stepping back as senior members of the royal family. 

PARTING SHOT

To play us out on what would have been his 85th birthday, here’s the King.