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

IRELAND

Sofia Oliveria from Porto in Portugal smelling the Dahlia flowers in the Botanic Gardens. Leah Farrell / rollingnews.ie Leah Farrell / rollingnews.ie / rollingnews.ie

• Thousands of demonstrators have gathered in Dublin to protest against the Israeli military operation in Gaza. 
• Richard Satchwell, the husband of Tina Satchwell, has appeared in court in Cashel charged with the murder of his wife. 
• A man has died in a road traffic collision between a tractor and a car in Co Louth, gardaí have said. 
• A man allegedly broke a protection order by posting an “indecent” image of his ex-partner online, a court heard.
• A pedestrian was killed in a road traffic collision involving two cars last night in Castleroy in Limerick. 
• There have been calls for Irish horseracing’s regulatory body to explain an alleged “discrepancy” in tens of thousands of euro it has provided to various charitible organisations in the sector.
• Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien has accused Sinn Féin’s Eoin Ó Broin of being “disingenuous” with his criticism of the Government’s action on housing and said reporting of certain figures “does not tell the full story”.
• Aer Lingus called on the Government to intervene in a row over night-time restrictions on flights at Dublin Airport, claiming plans to lower the number of night-time flights would cause “significant reputational damage” to Ireland. 

INTERNATIONAL

Participants walk on a tightrope during the Highline Festival in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

#ISRAEL-HAMAS Thousands of Palestinians have fled to southern Gaza seeking refuge after Israel warned them to evacuate before an expected ground offensive against Hamas in retaliation for the deadliest attack in Israel’s history.   

#NEW ZEALAND Voting has closed in New Zealand’s general election and although ballot counting is still underway, incumbent Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has conceded defeat. 

#UKRAINE Ukrainian officials have reported intense combat, characterised by relentless assaults by Russian forces, as the ongoing attack on the eastern city of Avdiivka entered its fifth consecutive day.

#FRANCE France has said it will deploy 7,000 soldiers after declaring a top-level alert following the fatal stabbing of a teacher by a Chechen-origin man, who also severely wounded three others at a school.

#AUSTRALIA Australians have voted against enshrining an Indigenous advocacy committee in the constitution, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles has said.

PARTING SHOT

The Americas are being treated to a “Ring of Fire” solar eclipse in the skies above today.

For the small towns and cities along its narrow path, there was a mix of excitement, worries about the weather and concerns they would be overwhelmed by visitors flocking to see the celestial event, also called an annular solar eclipse.

There’s no need to get on a plane and head out into the New Mexico desert – the good people over at NASA are providing a live feed. 

We're getting our first views of the "ring of fire"!

Here's a look at the annular solar eclipse from Albuquerque, N.M., as the Moon nearly (but not completely) covers up the Sun. pic.twitter.com/SCW8r77FG4

— NASA (@NASA) October 14, 2023