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Frontbench delegates greet the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern as he arrives on stage at the Fianna Fáil Ardfheis at Citywest Hotel, Saggart, Co Dublin, last night, to galvanise the party ahead of the general election.

Photograph: Cyril Byrne

Irish nun receives one of India's highest honours
A 71-year-old Irish nun was yesterday awarded one of India's highest honours, rarely bestowed on foreigners, for her contribution to education and social services among the country's poor for more than 50 years.

DUP may have plan to break Monday deadline
The DUP appears to have developed a policy option that could yet see the party break Monday's devolution deadline - while firming-up its commitment to enter a power-sharing government with Sinn Féin in May.
MEP 'devastated' by ruling on autistic boy's education
The High Court's decision not to order the State to provide a six-year-old autistic boy with the education demanded by his parents could have implications for all people with disabilities, according to autism campaigners.

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Ireland

DPP appeals against suspended term for rapist
The Director of Public Prosecutions has lodged an appeal against a three-year suspended sentence imposed on a Co Clare man for the rape of a woman while she slept. p
HSE warned to prepare for flood of cheap, pure heroin
The Health Service Executive is not preparing adequately for a predicted influx of cheap, pure heroin in the coming months, the chairman of the National Advisory Committee on Drugs has warned. p
Art project's guests check in on 15th floor
Crisp, white linen on the beds, tasteful daffodil and twig arrangements on the tables and spectacular views across the Wicklow mountains, the Poolbeg towers and Howth Head. p
Review group wants changes to suspects' right to silence
An expert group appointed by the Government to examine the balance in criminal law has proposed wide-ranging changes which would restrict a suspect's right to silence. p
Charity says rent scheme subsidises squalid conditions
The State's rent supplement scheme is forcing the poorest and most vulnerable tenants to live in "grossly degrading" conditions in substandard bedsits, housing rights organisation Threshold has said. p
Maternity hospital's opening in doubt over staff levels
The planned opening of the new €75 million Cork University Maternity Hospital today remained in doubt last night as midwives considered fresh proposals from the Health Service Executive (HSE) to resolve a dispute over staffing levels. p
Pope gives his blessing to Paisley and McGuinness sharing power
The formation of a powersharing government in Northern Ireland led by the Rev Ian Paisley with Martin McGuinness as deputy first minister would represent a "powerful Christian witness to the world" according to Pope Benedict. p
Guidelines tot up election charges
The use of a TD's office in Leinster House, including electricity and heating, has been valued at €230 a week by the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission in a set of guidelines prepared for the forthcoming general election, The Irish Times has learned. p

World

Britain calls on Iran to release naval patrol
UK: Iran's ambassador to London, Rasoul Movahedian, was summoned to the British foreign office yesterday and asked to explain an incident, in which a British patrol conducting a routine search of traffic in the Shatt al-Arab waterway was surrounded by Iranian vessels and detained. p
Bush on the defensive as House votes to pull troops from Iraq
US: The House of Representatives voted yesterday to compel president George Bush to withdraw combat troops from Iraq next year but Mr Bush immediately said he would veto the Bill if it reaches his desk. p
Germany calls for creation of European army
EU: German chancellor Angela Merkel has called for the creation of a European army ahead of celebrations marking the European Union's 50th anniversary this weekend in Berlin. p
Fears over French Middle East policy may be exaggerated
FRANCE: As the presidential candidates court Israel, the Arab world suspects France could abandon its traditional policy of benevolence, writes Lara Marlowe . p

Finance

North's £1bn aid package gets muted welcome
Britain's latest aid package offers just £400m in 'new money' for the North, but an extra £18bn is earmarked for capital projects over coming years, writes Carissa Casey . p
Pay for top staff at Dublin-based Depfa falls by €5.8m
Top managers and directors at Depfa Bank, the Dublin-based but German-listed institution, saw their remuneration drop by €5.8 million to €28.3 million last year, writes Arthur Beesley , Senior Business Correspondent. p
Fyffes profits fall 75% as rules on imports change
Fruit group Fyffes reported an expected but significant decline in pretax profit last year, resulting from the lifting of restrictions on European banana imports, writes Claire Shoesmith . p

Sport

Leading lights can restore pride
Soccer: A willingness to look on the bright side seems to be a key part of almost everybody's job description in the FAI these days and being at least as much a team player as anyone in the Irish set-up this week, Bobby Robson did his bit on Wednesday when describing the Republic's recent run of results - a home draw with the Czechs and two defeats of San Marino - as "something of a roll". p
Ireland given World Cup reality check
Cricket: Ireland ran into a carnival procession here yesterday as a pumped-up West Indies cruised to victory in front of 20,000 cheering locals. p
Argentina tour gets go ahead
Rugby: Ireland's summer tour of Argentina is still scheduled to go ahead as planned despite the IRFU's displeasure at the procrastination of the host union over the venue for the first Test. p

Weekend

Eternal student of extremes
Though his prose is as surgically precise as ever in his new novel, Ian McEwan, like his work, has become less intimidating and more humane, as Eileen Battersby discovers p

News Features

A stroke too far for Fahy
Michael Fahy's conviction for fraud and theft was far from the 'slap on the wrist' he and his supporters were expecting. Will anyone else ever get caught, asks Kathy Sheridan p