A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Bar on Morrison details lifted
A High Court injunction that stopped publication of information about the private life of singer Van Morrison has been lifted.
The ban has been set aside on condition no privacy laws are breached by the News of the World. This includes an undertaking not to publish descriptions or photographs of others linked to the case.
Last October the Belfast-born performer secured a ruling which prevented the newspaper from printing photographs of him, his home and pictures of businesswoman Gigi Lee. At the time a judge declined to impose a so-called super-injunction, describing it as “too wide an ambit”.
In his affidavit, Morrison (65), set out how he performed in public but regarded his private life and personal relationships as an area to be kept away from scrutiny or comment.
He stated he had tried to protect his private life and “refused to be interviewed about it . . . or to authorise others” to comment on it, except in circumstances when a minimum of detail was required to minimise harm from “attempts of others to publish allegations about my private life”.
Morrison stressed that he had given no authority for anyone to publish the information or photographs under scrutiny.
'Lying Eyes' man to be extradited
A Las Vegas poker dealer jailed here for extortion in connection with a conspiracy by Co Clare woman Sharon Collins to have her partner and his two sons killed has consented to his extradition to the United States.
Egyptian-born Essam Eid (55) was sentenced to six years in November 2008 for demanding €100,000 from the son of businessman PJ Howard in exchange for not carrying out a contract to kill him, his brother and their father in September 2006.
He was also convicted of handling items stolen from the Howard family business. His sentence was backdated to his arrest in 2006 and, with remission, has been completed.
Collins, who created the internet alias "Lying Eyes", was jailed for six years for soliciting a hit-man to kill Mr Howard and his sons, and for conspiring to kill all three.
The US authorities had requested the extradition of Eid over charges of extortion amid threats to kill and injure arising from incidents in Los Angeles in 2006. One charge against him names his US partner, Teresa Engle, who gave evidence against him in the trial here.
Bail allows trip to sell concrete firm
A former leading member of the Provisional IRA and prison escaper was allowed by the Special Criminal Court in Dublin yesterday to travel to the Middle East to secure the sale of an Irish company that will supply concrete for the Qatar World Cup in 2022.
Anthony Sloan (56) was arrested last year and is facing a charge of IRA membership, but the court varied his bail conditions to allow for the trip. He is the intermediary in the sale of a concrete company to the Qataris. The court heard arrangements put in place for the sale of the company, which is to provide concrete for the World Cup, are in limbo because Mr Sloan had to surrender his passport as part of his bail. Mr Justice Paul Butler, presiding, said the court would vary the bail to allow the return of Mr Sloan's passport for one trip.
A native of Belfast with an address at Ard na Mara, Dundalk, Co Louth, he was one of eight IRA prisoners who escaped from Crumlin Road prison, Belfast, in 1981. The day after the escape he was convicted of possession of a machine gun and jailed for 20 years in his absence.