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

IRELAND

Fomer St Marys Nursing Home in Dublin is to be used to accommodate 220 asylum seekers Leah Farrell Leah Farrell

• Former Minister for Health, Simon Harris has said the terms of reference for the Covid-19 inquiry will go to Cabinet “shortly” and that the inquiry will reveal things that need to be done better. 
• Gardaí investigating the murder of Tristan Sherry after an alleged shooting on Christmas Eve in a Dublin restaurant have charged a second person.
• Justice Minister Helen McEntee is to consult with the Attorney General on the removal of judge Gerard O’Brien following conviction for sexual assault.
• Last year saw corporation tax receipts soar to record levels, according to end of year exchequer returns published today by the Department of Finance but McGrath warns that growth will continue at more modest levels into the future.
• The head of an anti-racism organisation has accused the Government and An Garda Síochána of not taking the rise of the far-right seriously amid a growing trend of arson attacks and anti-immigration protests.
• From this week, a number of third level students are set to gain from changes to funding with an increase in undergraduate grants, the reintroduction of post-graduate maintenance grants, and an increase in the PhD stipend.
• A large sum of heroin was seized by gardaí as a result of separate searches at two properties in counties Dublin and Meath yesterday.
• Several hospitals currently have visitor restrictions in place due to outbreaks of respiratory illnesses such as the flu and Covid.

INTERNATIONAL

Kashmiri Shia Muslims in India at a vigil chanting anti-Israel and anti-US slogans during a demonstration after two explosions in Iran that killed nearly 100 people Alamy Alamy

#MIDDLE EAST An American strike has killed a pro-Iran commander in Iraq who was involved in attacks on Washington’s troops, a US defense official has said.

#IMMUNITY President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus signed a new law today that gives him lifelong immunity from criminal prosecution and prevents opposition leaders living abroad from running in future presidential elections.

#SCHOOL SHOOTING A shooting at a high school in the midwestern US state of Iowa today has left “multiple gunshot victims,” local authorities said.

PARTING SHOT

Alamy Alamy

In London, a national COVID-19 memorial wall has been created.

People have left flowers as well as notes commemorating those who died in the pandemic.

Over 200,000 hearts have been painted to date on the wall outside St Thomas’ Hospital opposite the Houses of Parliament.