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

IRELAND

Minister for Defence Simon Coveney inspecting newly graduated officers at the Commissioning of Irish and Maltese Defence Force Officers ceremony earlier today Eamonn Farrell / Rollingnews.ie Eamonn Farrell / Rollingnews.ie / Rollingnews.ie

• Three weather warnings have been issued as Storm Gertrude gets ready to hit Irish shores.
• A body has been recovered from a slurry pit in the Whitechurch area of Co Cork.
• Midland Regional Hospital in Portlaoise has apologised to a family over the death of their baby. [RTÉ]
• Irish people have been warned to be careful when travelling in order to avoid contracting the Zika virus.
• TD Catherine Murphy claims that Phil Hogan met with Irish Water’s parent company before they were awarded a ‘lucrative contract’.
• Alan Shatter says that some gardaí use the Pulse system as a “social network for gossip”.
• Dean Strang, lawyer for Making a Murderer’s Steven Avery, defended Ray D’Arcy over his interview last Saturday.
• A shop worker has been injured after a robbery at knife-point in Glasnevin, Dublin.
• Supermac’s has been dealt a blow in its fight against McDonald’s.
• Alan Kelly canvassed ‘amongst ladies’ while the Dáil debated homelessness.
• A rural health centre in Co Tipperary has been operating without a GP for the past week.
• One of the country’s most vociferous political voices, Labour’s Pat Rabbitte, has bowed out of the Dáil in typical style.
• A cancelled Donegal flight left a cancer patient stranded.

WORLD

File photo of Disneyland Park, Paris Ian West / PA Ian West / PA / PA

#EURODISNEY: A man has been arrested at the popular resort while carrying two guns and a copy of the Koran.

#PARIS: Staff at Charles de Gaulle airport found fake bombs in a plane’s cargo that had been ordered by an American embassy.

#SWEDEN: The Scandinavian country is set to expel up to 80,000 asylum-seekers.

#TRUMP: The step-sister of Anne Frank has compared Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler.

#AUSTRALIA: An Australian teenager discussed putting explosives on a kangaroo, painting an Islamic State symbol on it, and setting it loose on police.

INNOVATION

• Java, one of the most prevalent of all internet plugins, is set to bite the dust…
• Tired of slipping on the pavement when it’s frosty out? Here’s the answer to your prayers – electrified concrete [Geek]

PARTING SHOT

“What is this?” you might ask. “A teddy bear made to look like Adolf Hitler?”

LHL Astma og allergi / Facebook LHL Astma og allergi / Facebook / Facebook

Indeed, that’s exactly what it is. It’s the Norwegian Heart and Lung Association’s slightly left-field way of drawing attention to the dangers that unwashed cuddly toys pose to asthma and allergy-sufferers.

Because of the accumulated dust you see. Possibly a tiny bit extreme guys.

You can see more from the association’s social media campaign on its Facebook page.