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

Ireland

President Michael D Higgins inspects the Defence Forces at the 1916 Easter Rising commemoration this morning Leah Farrell Leah Farrell

• Multiple flights into Dublin Airport were diverted this afternoon following an incident involving a plane arriving into the airport.
• A commemoration to mark the 107th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising took  place outside the GPO on O’Connell Street this morning.
• Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said that there will be “deep engagement” with the UK Government and parties in Northern Ireland as part of efforts to restore the powersharing executive in Stormont.
• A new opinion poll has indicated that support for Fine Gael has slumped to a record low, while Sinn Féin is enjoying its highest ever level of support among voters.
• A woman in her 70s has died after being struck by a car in Co Monaghan at approximately 10:45pm last night.

International

Pope Francis delivering the 'Urbi et Orbi' Easter message from St. Peter's Basilica at The Vatican. PA PA

#TAIWAN Chinese fighter jets and warships simulated strikes on Taiwan today as they encircled the island during a second straight day of military drills that were launched in response to its president meeting the US House speaker.

#NUREMBERG Ben Ferencz, the last living prosecutor from the Nuremberg trials, who secured guilty verdicts from 22 Nazis and dedicated his life to fighting international injustice, has died at age 103.

#UKRAINE Weekend shelling by Russian forces killed at least seven civilians, Ukrainian officials reported on today as Pope Francis used his traditional Easter message to highlight the war in Ukraine and other conflicts around the world.

#ALPS AVALANCHE Four people were killed and more injured in an avalanche earlier today near Mont Blanc in southeastern France, the French interior minister has said.

#HAMBURG Police today warned people in Hamburg, Germany, to close their windows after a large fire that engulfed several warehouses sent black, chemical-laden smoke drifting over the city.

Parting Shot

In this morning’s poll, we asked our readers what their favourite brand of chocolate was and there was fairly mixed response.

While not a runaway winner, Cadbury’s was the most popular choice for our readers, with 39.1% of all respondents choosing it over the seven other options.

Coming in second place was Lindt, who took 31.2% of the vote, while Butlers came in third with 10.4%.

Here are the full results:

The Journal The Journal