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

IRELAND

Leah Farrell Leah Farrell

• Fresh Status Orange wind warnings were issued this evening for five counties, following the passage of Storm Gerrit over Ireland today. 
• Gardaí launched an investigation following the discovery of a man’s body at a residence in Co Tipperary.
• Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said Robbie Keane’s job with Israeli soccer team Maccabi Tel Aviv is “a matter for him”, amid some criticism of Ireland’s record goalscorer from supporters of Palestine.
• Tánaiste Micheál Martin said he does not think new gambling laws will affect the horse racing industry, amid concerns raised by the sector.
• Plans to free up an additional 12,000 rental properties from the short-term let market are back on track with government aiming to have the new regulatory system up and running by next summer.
• A man was arrested and extradited to Northern Ireland after his licence for release from prison was revoked.
• Diana, Princess of Wales showed “obvious ignorance of, or disregard for, constitutional niceties” in relation to Northern Ireland, according to a note from the Irish ambassador in 1993.
• State records released this month also show the government considered making the age of consent for gay people 21 years when it was planning to decriminalise homosexuality in 1993.
• The newly released papers also reveal Gerry Adams acknowledged in June 2001 that Sinn Féin needed to move away from “any association of violence” to stop attracting “head bangers” to the party.

INTERNATIONAL

1993 file image of former EU Commission head Jacques Delors Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

#AUSTRALIA: At least nine people have died as bad weather hit the Australian eastern states of Queensland and Victoria.

#GAZA: The Israeli bombardment, siege and ground invasion of Gaza has killed more than 21,000 Palestinians.

#TRUMP: Michigan’s Supreme Court is keeping former US president Donald Trump on the state’s primary election ballot.

#SOUTH KOREA Lee Sun-Kyun, a popular South Korean actor best known for his role in the Oscar-winning film Parasite, was found dead in a car in Seoul after weeks of an intense police investigation into his alleged drug use.

#FRANCE Jacques Delors, a former head of the EU Commission and key figure in the creation of the euro currency, died aged 98.

#GERMANY Wolfgang Shaeuble, who helped negotiate German reunification in 1990, died aged 81.

#BREXIT The UK government announced it’s abandoning plans to start selling goods in imperial measures after a consultation revealed 99% support for keeping the metric system. 

PARTING SHOT

The research suggests a link between gut microbes and social anxiety disorder

New research led by a University College Cork professor has discovered possible links between microbes in our guts and social anxiety disorder (SAD).

The new study builds on recent findings that SAD patients have distinct microbiomes when compared with healthy individuals.

The latest research transplanted microbiota from six patients with SAD into mice and this resulted in the mice exhibiting increased sensitivity to fear conditioning during social interactions, as well as changes to immune and brain functions.

The paper’s author’s say the findings show that “the microbiota–gut–brain axis is an ideal target for identifying novel therapeutics to improve symptoms in SAD”.

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