The 5 at 5: Friday

The 5 at 5 Five minutes, five stories, five o’clock…

EVERY WEEKDAY EVENING, The Journal brings you five of the biggest stories of the day.

1. #WASHINGTON DC: The Taoiseach has downplayed the chaos caused by the Burke family at a St Patrick’s Day gala in Washington DC last night and defended the security measures that were in place.

2. #COURTS: A convicted rapist who raped, sexually assaulted and falsely imprisoned a young woman at a Dublin holiday complex has been jailed for ten years.

3. #UKRAINE: Donald Trump has hailed “very good and productive discussions” between the US and Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying there is “a very good change” the war in Ukraine could end.

4. #NEWRY CROWN COURT: The trial of former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson and his wife on charges relating to alleged historical sex offences is to be delayed after a judge was told that Eleanor Donaldson is currently “unfit to stand trial”.

5. #GAZA: Hamas has said it is ready to free an Israeli-American hostage and the remains of four other dual nationals, after the militant group and Israel gathered for indirect Gaza ceasefire talks.