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

IRELAND

Charlie (4) & Poppy (3) Kelly Knight from Dublin enjoy the sunny weather at the Dublin seaside today. Leah Farrell Leah Farrell

• In our lead story this morning, Valeri Flynn looked into the rise in the number of road fatalities and the possible causes behind it. 
• Rental costs in Dublin are so high that young gardaí are faced with commuting for hours to work and some choose to sleep in cars rather than travel home after a 12-hour shift, a senior garda said. 
• A woman in her 30s died after a two-vehicle collision in Kilsheelan, Co Tipperary last night.
• Ten people were arrested and charged in relation to a number of offenses including burglary, possession of drugs for sale or supply, criminal damage and theft after a number of searches by gardaí in co Wexford yesterday.
• The PSNI issued a warning and said it is aware of social media commentary and reports in the media regarding charges which it issued to a 61-year-old man and 57-year-old woman on Thursday. 
• A man aged in his late teens was hospitalised after an alleged stabbing during an aggravated robbery incident on Camden Street in Dublin city centre last night.
• A local fishing boat was towed to shore in Cork after it lost the ability to manoeuvre and called the RNLI for help. 
• The Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland Emma Little-Pengelly said she will work closely with the interim leader of the Democratic Unionist Party Gavin Robinson after Jeffrey Donaldson’s departure yesterday.
• The pro-Palestine activists were arrested at Shannon Airport this morning while trying to block US military planes.

INTERNATIONAL

Christian pilgrims carry across along the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

#UNIFIL Four observers from the United Nations’ peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon were injured after an alleged missile strike on the town of Rmeish this morning. 

#GAZA The Palestine Red Crescent said five people were killed and dozens wounded by gunfire and a stampede during an aid delivery in northern Gaza, where famine looms.

#VATICAN Pope Francis skipped traditional Good Friday processions at the Colosseum in Rome, Italy last night in order to “conserve his health” ahead of other Easter services this weekend.

PARTING SHOT

IN LEINSTER HOUSE recently, a senior regulator announced that the era of self-regulation by digital tech companies was over. Niamh Hodnett, the Online Safety Commissioner with Coimisiún na Meán, was addressing an Oireachtas Committee.

If indeed that turns out to be the case, then it’s a good start. However, it does beg the question as to why we ever thought that self-regulation by the tech platforms would be a good idea.

You can read the rest of Noeline Blackwell’s Voices article here.