GOOD MORNING. HERE are the top stories as your day gets underway.

1. Gaza

Overnight raids on the Gaza Strip killed at least 55 people, the Hamas government said today, after Israel announced it was stepping up strikes.

The Hamas government says more than 4,300 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Israeli raids since the war started in response to the worst attacks suffered by Israel with 1,400 dead, also mainly civilians.

Israel has massed tens of thousands of troops around Gaza for a widely predicted ground invasion.

2. Web Summit

Paddy Cosgrave resigned as chief executive officer of the Web Summit amid ongoing controversy over comments he made about the Israel-Hamas war.

Cosgrave’s comments caused a large number of influential companies to pull out of this year’s summit, including Google, Meta, Intel and Amazon. 

He still retains a controlling stake in the company.

3. Bobby Charlton

Manchester United and England great Bobby Charlton has died aged 86, his family have announced in a statement.

Charlton was a key member of England’s victorious 1966 World Cup team and also enjoyed great success at club level with United, who became the first English club to win the European Cup in 1968.

He was the brother of former Ireland manager Jack Charlton, who died in 2020.

4. Maternity leave

Women with cancer will be able to defer their maternity leave under new legislation.

Speaking at the Green Party conference in Cork today, Minister Roderic O’Gorman said he will be working on the new legislation “over the next number of months”.

The legislation would allow women who have cancer or other serious illnesses to avail of the full period of their maternity leave once their treatment ends. 

5. Coalition 

The Green Party will not rule out being part of a future Sinn Féin-led coalition but negotiating a sufficiently eco-friendly programme for government could prove challenging, Eamon Ryan has said.

The Greens’ leader said his party wanted to serve in government again and was open to talking to all parties.

6. Lotto

The National Lottery failed to broadcast last night’s Lotto draw due to a “minor technical issue”.

The live feed was suspended mid-broadcast due to the fact that the Lotto Plus 1 draw machine began selecting balls earlier than the sequence should have started.

The operator said that the recording of the draw continued but the live TV broadcast was halted as a result. In a statement, the National Lottery that the issue did not affect the integrity of the draw.

7. Arms 

Czech Government officials and arms industry companies will host a gathering from its defence sector in Ireland this week. 

The event, due to be held in Dublin city on Tuesday, will focus on the possibilities of Czech Republic companies looking to sell products to the Irish military.

8. Monaghan

A woman in her 70s died yesterday after she was hit by a car while cycling on Cootehill Road, close to Monaghan town.

The collision occurred at 1.20pm yesterday. The woman was pronounced deceased at the scene and her body was removed to Monaghan Hospital where a post-mortem will take place.

9. RTÉ

Media Minister Catherine Martin has said that any decision on interim funding for national broadcaster RTÉ will depend on it being able to show increased transparency and accountability.

Speaking yesterday during the Green Party’s annual convention, Martin said that “trust has been shattered” in the broadcaster, following the payments scandal.