First COVID-19 death in Ireland

Nine new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Ireland.

Meanwhile, the first death of a patient suffering from the virus has also been recorded in the country.

The woman died in a hospital in the east of the country. She was elderly and was suffering from an underlying medical condition.

She was initially treated in hospital for respiratory problems before being diagnosed with COVID-19.

COVID-19 outbreak declared a pandemic

The World Health Organisation has declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic.

In a briefing this evening WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the number of cases of the disease had increased 13-fold outside of China in the past two weeks.

He said the number of affected countries had tripled.

Dr Tedros said officials are “deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction.”

Greens call for ‘crisis national government’

The Green Party has rocked Fine Gael’s and Fianna Fáil’s government formation plans by calling for a short-term “crisis national government.”

It comes after Micheál Martin and Leo Varadkar yesterday agreed to enter “in-depth, detailed talks” on forming a government.

The two parties do not have enough seats to form a majority on their own and the Greens were central to their plans.

However, the Green Party Parliamentary Party this afternoon called for all parties to “suspend discussions on forming a majority government.”

Woman dies after being hit by getaway car

A search is underway for three men after a woman was killed when she was hit by a car being used as a getaway vehicle following a robbery in Dublin.

54-year-old Jacqueline McGovern died in hospital overnight after she was hit by the car on the Avondale Road in Killiney last night.

Another woman, aged 51 and believed to be a friend of Ms McGovern's, is being treated at St Vincent’s University Hospital.

Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

Weinstein sentenced to 23 years in prison

Disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault.

Weinstein addressed the court for the first time before the sentence was handed down, claiming that he was not given due process during the trial.

He said he and other men facing allegations in the #MeToo movement are accused of “things that none of us understood.”

“Thousands of men are losing due process,” he said. “I'm worried about this country.”