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

IRELAND

CATU and Dublin City Council tenants held a demonstration to protest the council’s sweeping rent increases, which average 30% and are set to take effect on 6 April . Leah Farrell Leah Farrell

• A 34-year-old man was remanded in custody after being charged with attempted murder of a west Dublin mother who was set on fire at her home last November.
• A woman in her 50s was arrested in connection with the discovery of a man’s body in a residence in Dublin.
• Just one in six homes are likely to qualify for new windows and doors energy efficiency grants, the agency administering the scheme indicated.
• President Catherine Connolly attended an event marking the 75th anniversary of a veterans’ homeless charity.
• A GAA club in Swords said it is set to lose 50% of its playing space due to the Metrolink.
• Two brothers, one described as “not the Napoleon of crime”, were remanded in custody after gardaí uncovered almost €1.5m at a “safehouse” in Tallaght, Dublin.
• There have been calls for Bus Éireann to reverse its decision to end Expressway services.
• A man in 30s was charged in connection to the seizure of 21.5 kilograms of herbal cannabis at Dublin Airport yesterday.
• A developer who out €3.22m in “exceptional planning costs” in settling High Court judicial review proceedings taken by local residents over a contentious apartment proposal can now proceed with constructing the stalled 481-unit apartment scheme.
• Accumulated profits at a property management company owned by Minister of State Michael Healy-Rae exceeded €1 million last year, according to newly filed accounts.
• It’s that time of the year again. In case you’ve forgotten, the clocks are set to go forward one hour tonight.

INTERNATIONAL

Demonstrators rally before marching across the Memorial Bridge during the No Kings protest Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

#MIDDLE EAST: Israel’s military said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen early this morning, the first time it had faced fire from that country during the current conflict.

#STRAIT OF HORMUZ: Thailand reached an agreement with Iran to allow Thai oil vessels safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, the Southeast Asian nation’s prime minister said.

#GAZA: More than 7,000 Palestinians have been reported missing in Gaza since the start of the war in October 2023.

#NO KINGS: Massive protests against President Donald Trump kicked off today across the United States and beyond, as millions of people vent fury over what they see as his authoritarian bent and other forms of cruel, law-trampling governance.

#PARIS: French police stopped an apparent bomb attack outside a US bank in Paris early this morning when they arrested a man about to set off a homemade explosive device.

#FLORIDA: Tiger Woods was arrested and charged with driving under the influence after a car crash in Florida near his home.

#PAPAL VISIT: Pope Leo denounced the widening gap between the haves and have-nots as he visited Monaco today, a millionaires’ playground that is the surprise pick for the first western European trip of his papacy.

#MET POLICE: The Metropolitan Police is reviewing CCTV from the day Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney had his phone stolen, according to reports.

PARTING SHOT

KitKat did not say where specifically the goods had gone missing, but said the vehicle remains unaccounted for. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

A huge shipment of KitKat chocolate bars was stolen in Europe, the brand said, warning that the heist risked causing shortages in stores right before Easter.

KitKat, owned by Swiss food giant Nestle, today confirmed that “a truck transporting 413,793 units of its new chocolate range has been stolen during transit in Europe”.

The shipment, weighing around 12 tonnes, disappeared last week while heading between production and distribution locations, it said.

“We’ve always encouraged people to have a break with KitKat,” a spokesperson for the brand said, referring to its catchphrase.

“But it seems thieves have taken the message too literally and made a break with more than 12 tonnes of our chocolate.”

The brand warned that “the theft may lead to a shortage of KitKats appearing on shelf”, acknowledging that “consumers, unfortunately, may struggle to find their favourite chocolates ahead of Easter”.