EVERY DAY, TheJournal.ie brings you a round-up of all the day’s main news as well as the bits and pieces that you may have missed.

• This website understands that the arrest of a man in his 40s in Dublin today was connected to security operations surrounding the visit of US president Barack Obama later this month. The man is being held at Store Street Garda Station this evening.
• The minister for public expenditure and reform has been in robust mood today telling Reuters that Ireland will seek to reschedule its loans from the EU and IMF and insisting that there will be no further austerity measures or a compromise on corporation tax in return for a lowering of the interest rate on the bailout package.
• Swift justice down at the courts today with a man arrested for smuggling almost 10,000 cigarettes in his bag at Dublin Airport this morning, charged with excise tax evasion, appearing in court and given a six-month jail sentence – all by the close of play this evening.
• A Galway-based construction company with millions of euro worth of work lined up for public sector projects including schools says it has been forced to temporarily lay off hundreds of staff and suspend some work because it is owed money from the government.
• A man has been charged in connection with an attack on Celtic football manager Neil Lennon after the former Northern Ireland international was assaulted in the middle of a match against Hearts last night. See how it all unfolded here.
• Today we’ve been asking you to caption this rather bizarre photocall involving models with strange hats, leather and a whole load of onions…Eleanor Fitzsimons has quite aptly commented: “Ah ‘twould bring a tear to your eye…”

• A Dublin court has issued an arrest warrant for a convicted rapist whose severed arm was found on Dollymount beach in February. The man is believed to be dead by gardaí investigating the circumstances of the discovery and the man’s disappearance.
• The columnist and author Fiona Looney says she had the idea for the RTÉ reality show Celebrity Bainisteoir back in 2004, denying claims that she and RTÉ stole the concept as Patrick Kinsella is maintaining.
• There’s been a widespread welcome for a new study that has found that treating HIV patients early dramatically lowers their chances of spreading the AIDS virus to a sexual partner. A “serious game-changer” according to the executive director of UNAIDS.
• Residents of the south eastern Spanish town of Lorca are afraid to return to their homes after the country’s deadliest earthquake in 55 years struck yesterday and killed nine people.
• Ever wondered what it would be like if Ireland defaulted in its debt as has no doubt been a topic for discussion around the water-cooler at some stage over the past few months? Argentinian businessman Andres Blumenthal has been describing what it was like in his country when Buenos Aires decided to default on its debt of €57 billion.
• We’re super excited for Jedward’s appearance at Eurovision later on this evening as they sing their catchy tune ‘Lipstick’ in the semi finals of the song contest in Dusseldorf tonight. They’ll be hoping that their talents and their quiffs will make it into Saturday’s final. Stay tuned to TheJournal.ie for Jedward related hysteria later. We can hardly wait…
• But before all that check out this amazing video of five months spent paragliding, speed flying and base jumping around New Zealand. Not for the faint-hearted by the looks of it…

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