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

A diver dressed as Santa Claus surfaces after swimming in the Coral Garden tank at the South East Asia Aquarium of Resorts World Sentosa, a popular tourist attraction in Singapore. The performance was part of the aquarium’s Christmas celebrations. Pic: AP Photo/Wong Maye-E

IRELAND

• The weather is causing some travel disruption while thousands of homes have been without power today.
• US diplomat Richard Haass has gone home for Christmas without the parties in Northern Ireland reaching an agreement on three contentious issues.
• Revelations about the pay of senior executives at St Vincent’s Hospital have several members of the Public Accounts Committee very angry.
• A man in his 60s has died in a road crash in Tipperary.
• Ryanair has come to the rescue of a mother of sick twins who faced being stranded in London for Christmas.
• There will be no decision on possible income tax cuts until closer to the Budget next year.
• It’s not been a good Christmas for retailers so far.
• Bono and Glen Hansard have been entertaining the masses on Grafton Street this evening.
• Santa is cleared for flying through Irish airspace and landing on our shores later tonight. Here’s how and why you can track him.

WORLD

#GAZA: The Israeli military have carried out an air strike on the Gaza Strip in response to the shooting a civilian along the border fence.

#SOUTH SUDAN: The UN says it has found a mass grave with 75 bodies in the increasingly violent and unstable African country.

#UK: Alan Turing, the code-breaker who helped the Allies defeat the Nazis in World War II, has been given a posthumous pardon.

#CHINA: A woman in her 60s gave birth to twins following IVF treatment.

INNOVATION

• A quarter of a million Windows computers have been hit by what’s known as ransomware where users’ data is scrambled and a fee is demanded to unencrypt it. [BBC]

PARTING SHOT(S)

As it’s Christmas we’ve got two lovely treats for you tonight…

• Here’s what Dublin is going to look like tomorrow according to these eerie pictures from Remy Connolly.
• And here are 39 photos from 2013 that will take your breath away

Happy Christmas!

Making a difference

A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.

For the price of one cup of coffee each week you can make sure we can keep reliable, meaningful news open to everyone regardless of their ability to pay.

Support us Learn More