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

IRELAND

Sunrise over Dollymount Strand Sam Boal / Rollingnews.ie Sam Boal / Rollingnews.ie / Rollingnews.ie

• Public health officials confirmed 77 deaths and 1,910 new cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
• Northern Ireland recorded 12 deaths and 670 new Covid-19 cases this afternoon.
• Schools may not reopen until March and Covid-19 restrictions will be in place in some form for at least six months, the Taoiseach said.
• Healthcare workers who are still in need of their first vaccine dose will likely be waiting until mid-February as Ireland waits for more supply from Pfizer.
• Deserted Dublin streets have caused problems for outreach workers and concerns over anti-social behaviour.
• Mandatory drug tests for gardaí are to be put in place this year.
• AIB customers have been hit by an increase in “smishing” fraud attacks over text this month.
• A claim on social media that suggests a lack of hospitalisations from flu is because cases are mistakenly being diagnosed as Covid-19 is incorrect. 
• A Status Yellow snow/ice warning is in effect nationwide until noon tomorrow.

THE WORLD

PA PA

#RUSSIA Police aggressively detained protesters as thousands of supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny took to the streets following his call to protest against President Vladimir Putin’s rule. 

#ITALY Italian prosecutors have opened a probe into the accidental death of a 10-year-old girl who allegedly took part in a “blackout challenge” on TikTok.

#US Donald Trump’s impeachment trial in the US Senate will begin the week of 8 February in the first time a former president will face such charges after leaving office.

 #WALES The leader of the Welsh Conservatives has resigned following the disclosure he was among a group of politicians who drank alcohol on the Senedd estate days after a pub alcohol ban came into force. 

PARTING SHOT

Shutterstock / Featureflash Photo Agency Shutterstock / Featureflash Photo Agency / Featureflash Photo Agency

Talk show host Larry King, one of the most well-known figures on US television, passed away today at the age of 87.

He was best known for his 25-year-run as the host of CNN’s “Larry King Live” and had a career spanning over 60 years.

He interviewed US presidents, world leaders Yasser Arafat and Vladimir Putin, and celebrities like Frank Sinatra, Marlon Brando and Barbra Streisand.