Five things you need to know today

Barack Obama rebukes Trump, the power of your nose and Irish nurses leaving home

President Obama has urged voters to unite behind Hillary Clinton as the most qualified candidate to protect the country’s values and continue his legacy, In an evocative speech at the Democratic convention in Philadelphia. Video: REUTERS

1. Barack Obama calls Donald Trump a ‘homegrown demogogue’

US President Barack Obama raised the stakes in November's presidential election into a defence of American democracy against "home-grown demagogues" and urged Democrats to unite behind Hillary Clinton as the most qualified to protect the country's values and continue his legacy.

2. FBI warns of increased Islamic violence in Europe

US intelligence has warned that Europe faces a new wave of Islamist violence on an even greater scale, concentrated on Paris and Brussels.

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"At some point there's going to be a terrorist diaspora out of Syria like we've never seen before," said James Comey, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations in New York.

3. Human nose can help kill superbugs, research claims

Scientists have found a new weapon in the fight against antibiotic-resistant superbugs and it comes from an unlikely source: the human nose.

Researchers have discovered a microbe living in some people’s noses that produces a substance that is able to kill dangerous bacteria, including superbugs.

4. Up to 50% of nurses hired under UK drive again take flight

About half of all nurses and midwives recruited over the last year by the HSE as part of a campaign to encourage Irish graduates to return from the UK have left again.

The scheme introduced in July 2015 by the HSE sought to attract up to 500 Irish nurses and midwives working in the UK and further afield to return home and to take up posts in the public health service here.

However only about 90 staff were recruited as part of the campaign, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).

5. Young homeless the fastest growing group among destitute

Young adults are now the fastest increasing age group in homelessness, the latest figures show.

Figures from the Department of Housing show there were 696 young adults in emergency accommodation in the State last month, a 9 per cent rise since January and a 20 per cent rise since December.

And finally...Do we really want to give Irish passports to all these Brits? An opinion piece from Christopher Kissane and David Kenny talks about how Brexit has seen many people across the UK rummaging through their attics for evidence of entitlement to an EU passport.