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

IRELAND

Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO

• Ireland failed to beat the All Blacks in their rugby clash at the Aviva today. The final score was Ireland 9, New Zealand 21.
• Locals in North Dublin city are objecting to a ‘Berlinesque’ wall that’s been erected as part of Luas works in the area.
• Paul Murphy has said that he’s not surprised that a report suggests water charges will be imposed in Ireland, but that it was up to the Dáil to make the final decision.
• Gardaí have charged a 26-year-old man in connection with a €1.5 million cocaine seizure which occurred yesterday in Rathmines.
• The sale of counterfeit alcohol has been linked to a number of suspicious deaths as Revenue warned of a crackdown on the illicit trade before Christmas.
• A wheelchair user in Dublin has spoken of her frustration at being left behind on a train at Heuston Station which then darkened its lights leaving her stranded.

WORLD

Elf Phillipa with her dog Farrah during the opening day of Lapland UK, a village with an ice rink, reindeer and snowy landscapes. PA Wire / PA Images PA Wire / PA Images / PA Images

#ALEPPO’S HOSPITALS: Intense government airstrikes and artillery fire shook multiple hospitals and schools, forcing a lot of medical facilities to close.

#HAMILTON: The cast of the award-winning Broadway musical, made an unusual call from the stage for the incoming Trump administration to work on behalf of all Americans, addressing Vice President-elect Mike Pence.

#CHILD MARRIAGE: A bill in Turkey that would overturn men’s convictions for child sex assault if they married their victim has provoked fury.

#BUCKINGHAM PALACE: The Royal residence needs a taxpayer-funded £369 million face-lift if it’s to remain fit for the queen.

INNOVATION

• Ireland will insert itself into the middle of a European dispute that centres on whether US car-sharing giant Uber should be regulated like a taxi provider.

PARTING SHOT

While it seems society can be animalistic at times, it’s the animal kingdom that can remind us of how to be civil. Here’s a video of a polar bear petting a dog.