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

Thousands of pro-EU protesters turn out at a rally in Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine today (AP Photo/Andrew Kravchenko)

IRELAND

• The ESB strike has been averted after management and unions reached an agreement.
• A probe has started into allegations that some gardaí made fraudulent pay claims.
• Gerry Adams has challenged other party leaders to a debate on the past.
• A human skull has been found in Meath.
• Two motorcyclists have died in separate crashes on Ireland’s roads today.
• The Garda Commissioner wants to stop documents about Sophie Toscan Du Plantier from being released. [RTÉ]
• There’s no love lost between Pat Rabbitte and Colm Keaveney judging by these comments.
• The number of families losing their home in Dublin has doubled.
• Joan Burton says changes to maternity benefit won’t stop mothers from wanting to work.

INTERNATIONAL

Members of a choir pray at a mass in memory of Nelson Mandela at the Regina Mundi church, which became one of the focal points of the anti-apartheid struggle, in Soweto, Johannesburg today. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis).

#PROTEST: Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Kiev in a giant pro-EU demonstration.

#SLAVERY: Three men, believed to be victims of slavery, have been rescued by police in Bristol.

#MADIBA: Some 60 heads of state and government will attend Nelson Mandela’s memorial or funeral in the coming days. [BBC]

#AWKWARD: UK politicians aren’t happy about their 11 per cent pay rise – but there’s not a lot they can do about it.

INNOVATION

• Bitcoin prices have plunged since China started to crack down on the digital currency. [Mashable]
• Thinking about buying a tablet? Here’s our guide to the best – and worst – features of some of the most popular tablets out there.

PARTING SHOT

David Simon is the creator of visceral dramas about American society including The Wire, The Corner and Treme. In this edited extract from a recent speech, he describes how America has been completely divided in its economics and politics and tries to pinpoint what has gone wrong. [Observer]

Here’s what happened yesterday >