Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 21 Feb 2014

1. UKRAINE PRESIDENT AGREES EARLY ELECTION

Viktor Yanukovych, president of Ukraine, says he has reached a peace deal with the country’s opposition to end weeks of violent protest in which 77 have died. The deal includes plans for an early election, he says. The two sides held all-night talks brokered by the foreign ministers of France, Germany and Poland. The EU has said it will impose sanctions on some officials.

Ukraine rekindles Nato aspirations, angering Russia

2. THREE MEN ARRESTED AS AUSCHWITZ GUARDS

Three men aged 88, 92 and 94 have been arrested on suspicion of having worked as guards at the Nazi death camp Auschwitz. They were all sent to a prison hospital after being arrested. The arrests come after a court accepted that working in a camp constitutes being an accessory to murder in the case of Nazi guard John Demjanjuk.

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3. UK INTEREST RATES TO RISE IN 2015

One Bank of England policy maker, Martin Weale, has said it is “likely” that interest rates will rise in the spring of 2015, after being held at a record low of 0.5% since 2008. He said the rise was likely to be “gradual” but added that he could not rule out a rise happening earlier than expected, if UK earnings rise more quickly.

4. FARAGE AGREES TO EU DEBATE WITH CLEGG

Ukip leader Nigel Farage has agreed to take on Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg in a debate on the European Union, and has called for Prime Minister David Cameron and Ed Miliband to also take part. Farage accepted the challenge on LBC radio. There have been calls for Farage to take part in the leaders' debates head of the 2015 general election.

Why Nigel Farage has accepted Clegg's EU debate challenge

5. BRITISH CURLING TEAM WINS SILVER

The Team GB men's curling team had to be content with a silver medal at the Winter Olympics after losing to Canada in the final. The Canadian team made it a hat-trick of golds dating back to 2006 as they ran out 9-3 winners over David Murdoch's side. However, Team GB now have four medals making Sochi their most successful Games ever.

6. ROSE WEST URGED TO SPEAK OF 'MURDER'

The brother of Mary Bastholm, a schoolgirl who vanished in 1968, has urged Rose West to break her silence from jail on the subject. Peter Bastholm believes his sister was abducted by serial killer Fred West, who killed himself in jail 20 years ago, and thinks his widow, Rose, must know where Mary’s body was buried.

Rose West urged to solve missing schoolgirl mystery

7. BARACK OBAMA MEETS THE DALAI LAMA

US president Barack Obama was today due to meet Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in Washington despite objections from Beijing, which warned that the move will "inflict grave damages" on US/China relations. The pair were to meet in the White House's Map Room, rather then the Oval Office, where the president usually greets heads of state.

8. STORMS CAUSED 'YEARS OF EROSION'

Severe storms this winter caused years of erosion in just a few days, experts say. Studland Bay in Dorset lost up to eight metres of its beach. Meanwhile, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors say homes hit by floods this winter will recover the value they have lost within three years, as river views are so popular.

9. BROOKS 'UNAWARE' OF MULCAIRE NOTW DEAL

Former News of the World editor Rebekah Brooks has told her trial at the old Bailey that she was "unaware" of a £92,000 annual contract with phone hacker Glenn Mulcaire or an arrangement he had with senior journalist Greg Miskiw. Brooks also denied claims she had a six-year affair with co-defendant Andy Coulson. The trial continues.

10. HOT TICKET: VON TRIER'S NYMPHOMANIAC

Lars Von Trier's controversial new two-part drama Nymphomaniac Vol 1&2 opens in UK cinemas this weekend. When a scholarly bachelor rescues a beaten woman from an alleyway, she recounts her history of sex addiction. Stars Charlotte Gainsbourg and Stellan Skarsgard. "Ferociously entertaining," says Variety.

Nymphomaniac - reviews of von Trier's 'provocative' film