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

IRELAND

Sasko Lazarov / RollingNews.ie Sasko Lazarov / RollingNews.ie / RollingNews.ie

• Health officials have confirmed a further eight deaths and 4,929 new cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
• The first shipment of the Moderna vaccine is set to arrive into Ireland by the end of this week.
• Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said he supports an investigation into the “disrespectful” leak of information from the Mother and Baby Homes report.
• Ireland must ensure that the “atrocities” carried out in institutions are never repeated, survivor Philomena Lee has said.
• The events industry is offering to use its resources to help with planning and delivering the vaccine rollout.
• The public has been told to reconsider travelling to the mountains as social distancing is difficult to maintain during emergency rescue situations.
• Letterkenny University Hospital has apologised to patients who were left waiting in ambulances while the hospital faced “immense pressure”.
• December saw record-high spending on groceries, but less spending than the previous year on whole turkeys.
• The Late Late Toy Show and Leo Varadkar’s St Patrick’s Day address were among the most-watched RTÉ broadcasts of 2020.

THE WORLD

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi J Scott Applewhite J Scott Applewhite

#US Donald Trump faces an impeachment charge of “incitement of insurrection”, while Joe Biden received his second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

#THE CITY Sex and the City is returning with a new ten-episode season.

#UK England has opened seven mass vaccination hubs, including in a football stadium and a conference centre.

#INDONESIA Searches in the aftermath of a plane that crashed after taking off in Indonesia have intensified.

PARTING SHOT

An unusual message has appeared on the official US State Department website.

The biographies for US President Donald Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence say that their terms ended this evening.

Trump and his VP are not due to leave office until later this month, but calls have been made for the president to resign following the violence that occurred on Capitol Hill last week.

There are no official reports that would indicate that Trump has resigned. 

It’s not clear yet how these lines came to appear on the website, or why.