Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Thursday 26 Jul 2012

1. ...BUT GAMES GET OFF TO SHAKY START

The organisers of the London Olympics were forced to apologise on day one of the Games after the South Korean flag was shown ahead of a North Korean women's football match, prompting the upset players to walk off. There are also fears that the Opening Ceremony on Friday night will not be sold out.

North Korean flag fiasco: call in the Catastrophisation Unit!

2. USA CONFIRMS SYRIAN DEFECTIONS

America has confirmed that two more senior members of Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime have defected. The diplomats – formerly the ambassadors to the United Arab Emirates and to Cyprus – are husband and wife. They have fled to Qatar. Meanwhile, fighting is intensifying in the country’s second city of Aleppo.

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Two more Syrian diplomats quit as battle rages over Aleppo

3. BARCLAYS EXEC SCOOPS £8.7M PAY OFF

Jerry del Missier, the former Barclays Bank executive who gave evidence to a select committee about his role in the Libor fixing scandal, has left the bank with a pay-off of almost £9m, it has emerged. It was del Missier who told Barclays staff to lower the Libor rate in 2008 after ‘misunderstanding’ Bob Diamond's instructions.

New storm over £8.75m payout for Barclays’ Jerry del Missier

4. OBAMA SPEAKS OUT ON GUN VIOLENCE

Barack Obama has spoken out against gun violence following the alleged murder of 12 people in a Colorado cinema by James Holmes last week. The US president questioned whether civilians should be able to buy assault rifles and said that people with criminal backgrounds or mental illness should not be able to get their hands on guns so easily.

5. BO XILAI'S WIFE CHARGED WITH MURDER

Gu Kailai, the wife of disgraced Chinese politician Bo Xilai, has been charged with the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood. The death of Heywood, in a Chongqing hotel in November 2011, was at first blamed on heavy drinking. Xilai was sacked from his senior Communist party position in March and is under investigation.

6. PM: OLYMPICS SHOW 'BRITAIN CAN DELIVER'

David Cameron has insisted that the 2012 Olympics will prove that "Britain can deliver" despite the economic crisis and after comments from US presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who suggested that the country was not ready and questioned British enthusiasm for the event.

Mitt Romney questions London's enthusiasm for Olympics

7. OSBORNE WARNED TO RETHINK PLANS

The Chancellor is today facing calls from business leaders, the City and Labour to rethink his austerity plans and come up with a 'Plan B' after yesterdays shock slump in GDP. Analysts had expected the economy to contract for a third consecutive quarter by up to 0.5 per cent. Instead, it fell by 0.7 per cent.

Britain could lose AAA rating - but does it really matter?

8. KIM JONG-UN TIES THE KNOT

North Korea's young dictator, Kim Jong-un, has married the young woman repeatedly pictured with him in recent weeks. Ri Sol-ju is thought to be a singer. The two were photographed looking at a concert, a mausoleum and a kindergarten - and now state media has described her as Kim Jong-un's "wife".

9. TOWIE CAST MAY STRIKE OVER PAY

The cast of the ‘structured reality’ TV show The Only Way is Essex are threatening to walk off the show unless their pay is increased, according to the Sun. On Sunday, objecting to working 13 hours in the extreme heat, several walked off the show’s set, only to find that their scenes had been dropped.

10. HOT TICKET: FILL UP IN KING’S CROSS

Shrimpy’s, a new pop-up restaurant by the team behind Bistrotheque, has opened at the old BP petrol station in King’s Cross. The modern-American style menu combines Californian and South American flavours, with a hip diner feel. Dishes include a soft-shell crab burger, ceviche and tropical cocktails. “A destination diner”, says Time Out.