LAST UPDATE | 11 Mar 2022

GOOD MORNING.

Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your day.

Ukraine

1. Three more Ukrainian cities have been attacked for the first time as Russian forces edged closer to the capital Kyiv today.

Civilian targets have come under Russian shelling in Dnipro and Lutsk while the Russian defense ministry said that its troops targeted airports in Lutsk and Ivano-Frankivsk.

Racheal Diyaolu

2. Irish medical student Racheal Diyaolu has arrived safely back in Ireland after fleeing Ukraine.

The 19-year-old was reunited with her family in an emotional encounter at Dublin Airport last night. Racheal told RTÉ News she was “really overwhelmed but really happy”.

Ukrainian refugees

3. The Journal’s Niall O’Connor is reporting from the town of Przemysl, located ten kilometres from the Ukrainian/Polish frontier, which is now the centre of the European aid effort as thousands of refugees throng the train platforms and bus queues each day. 

Denis Donaldson

4. There is no evidence that police leaked information about the whereabouts of a former Sinn Fein member who was unmasked as an informant before he was murdered, a Northern Irish watchdog report has said.

Denis Donaldson was shot dead at a remote cottage in Donegal in April 2006, in a killing claimed by the Real IRA.

Children with disabilities

5. Disability organisations are calling on the urgent implementation of interim measures to address the lack of services being provided to children with disabilities following the stark findings of two recent surveys. 

Over 50% of the families of children surveyed by Inclusion Ireland were not in receipt of any service. Another survey by Down Syndrome Ireland backs this finding with almost half of their respondents reporting no therapy of any kind in the last year.

Taoiseach’s travels

6. Taoiseach Micheál Martin will travel to London today as part of a two-day trip to mark St Patrick’s Day celebrations this year. The trip takes places ahead of the Taoiseach’s trip to the United States on Monday.

Martin is due to attend the St Patrick’s Day celebrations, including the shamrock ceremony at the White House with the US President Joe Biden on Thursday. 

Roscommon crash

7. Two people have been killed and a third is in hospital following a single-car crash in Roscommon early this morning. 

Gardaí were called to the scene of the crash at about 3.30am on the R293 between Ballaghaderreen and Gorteen at Edmondstown road.

Sarah Everard vigil

8. Two senior judges are due to give their ruling over whether the Metropolitan Police breached the rights of the organisers of a planned vigil for Sarah Everard with its handling of the planned event.

Jussie Smollett 

9. Jussie Smollett maintained his innocence during his sentencing hearing after a judge sentenced the former Empire actor to 150 days in jail for lying to police about a racist and homophobic attack that he orchestrated himself.