Pope Francis celebrates 85th birthday – meets with migrants and refugees from Cyprus; takes call from Putin
Vatican City RNS Pope Francis celebrated his 85 birthday on Friday by meeting with a dozen migrants and refugees who recently arrived in Italy thanks to the intercession of the Vatican, Catholic movements and authorities in Cyprus, where the Pope visited in early December. “You saved us!” one young Congolese refugee told the Pope during […]
Death toll from powerful typhoon in Philippines climbs to 12
Manila, Philippines Reuters The death toll from a typhoon that slammed into the Philippines rose to 12 on Friday, and its President feared it could climb further as authorities assess the devastation caused by one of the strongest tropical storms to hit the country this year. Aftermath of Typhoon Rai is seen in Dimiao, Bohol […]
Some 27 people feared dead after blaze at Japan clinic
Tokyo, Japan Reuters At least 27 people were feared dead after a fire swept through a psychiatry clinic in the Japanese city of Osaka on Friday, and media said police were investigating suspected arson. Some 27 people were in cardiopulmonary arrest, an official at Osaka’s city fire department told Reuters, the term used in Japan […]
Cautious clean-up on La Palma as hopes rise for end to volcano eruption
La Palma, Spain Reuters Authorities on Spain’s La Palma island allowed evacuated residents to return to clear their ash-covered houses on Thursday as scientists suggested solidifying lava vents beneath the Cumbre Vieja volcano could herald an end to the three-month eruption. Deep banks of black ash had piled up to head height outside Daniel Geronimo’s […]
Snapshot: Rice field in Laos
See ANNA HOCH-KENNEY’s image…
Soundbite – The TCM Update: Praise and worship in 2021
Hillsong Worship’s ‘These Same Skies’ was among the top praise and worship albums of 2021. Listen to this week’s TCM Update…
Updated: All from US missionary group freed in Haiti, police say
Last updated: 3.40pm (AEDT) Port-au-Prince, Haiti AP The remaining members of a US missionary group who were kidnapped two months ago in Haiti have been freed, Haitian police and the group said Thursday. The spokesman for Haiti’s National Police, Gary Desrosiers, confirmed to The Associated Press that the hostages had been released, but did not […]
US Congress approves import ban targeting forced labour in China
Washington DC, US AP US Senators gave final congressional approval Thursday to a bill barring imports from China’s Xinjiang region unless businesses can prove they were produced without forced labour, overcoming initial hesitation from the White House and what supporters said was opposition from corporations. The measure is the latest in a series intensifying US […]
Second ‘George Floyd’ Pietà stolen from Catholic University
Washington DC, US RNS A second painting of Jesus and His mother, Mary, in which Jesus is widely thought to be depicted as George Floyd, has been stolen from the walls of the Catholic University of America’s law school. The painting, which sits outside the chapel at CUA’s Columbus Law School, replaced an identical, larger […]
Rights groups report wave of abuses against Tigrayans in Ethiopian region
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Reuters Armed forces from Ethiopia’s Amhara region have stepped up killings, mass detentions and expulsions of ethnic Tigrayans in neighbouring western Tigray, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said on Thursday. Separately, Tigrayan television reported that air raids by the Ethiopian military on the town of Alamata, in southern Tigray, had killed […]