Pope Francis returns home after brief hospital stay - Vatican News

Pope Francis is discharged from the A. Gemelli University hospital on Saturday morning.

By Vatican News staff reporter

Pope Francis was released from Gemelli Hospital on Saturday morning following a brief hospital stay that involved scheduled tests and treatment for bronchitis.
 

31/03/2023

The Director of the Holy See Press Office says Pope Francis is scheduled to be released from hospital on Saturday, and is expected to be present at the Palm Sunday Mass in St ...

In a brief statement Saturday morning, the Holy See Press Office noted that, before his departure, the Holy Father greeted the leadership of the hospital, including Franco Anelli, the Rector of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart; Marco Elefanti, the General Director of the Policlinic; and the General Ecclesiastical Assistant for the hospital, Bishop Claudio Giuliodori, as well as the medical team and healthcare workers who assisted him during his convalescence.

The Agostino Gemelli University Policlinic, the largest hospital in Rome, is the teaching hospital for the Catholic University’s medical school. The hospital is named for Franciscan Friar Agostino Gemelli, a physician and psychologist, who was also the founder and first rector of the University.

As he left the hospital, Pope Francis stopped his car briefly to greet those present, pausing for a moment to embrace and pray with a couple who had lost their daughter during the night.

Visit to Santa Maria Maggiore

The Holy Father then headed for the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, where he prayed before the icon of Mary, Salus Populi Romani, for all the sick and those suffering due to the illness or loss of loved ones. He prayed in a special way for the children he met yesterday in the hospital's paediatric oncology and children's neurosurgery ward, entrusting them to the maternal protection of the Blessed Virgin. 

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiaGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnZhdGljYW5uZXdzLnZhL2VuL3BvcGUvbmV3cy8yMDIzLTA0L3BvcGUtZnJhbmNpcy1yZXR1cm5zLWhvbWUtYWZ0ZXItYnJpZWYtaG9zcGl0YWwtc3RheS5odG1s0gEA?oc=5

2023-04-02 07:08:44Z
1883240554

US tornadoes: Death toll grows as extreme storms ravage several states - BBC

This video can not be played

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

By Alys Davies & Thomas Mackintosh

BBC News

At least 26 people have been killed after a series of tornadoes tore through towns and cities in the South and Midwest of the United States.

Homes were destroyed and thousands left without power after storms caused devastation across several states.

According to the Washington Post, more than 60 tornado reports were recorded.

States including Arkansas, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana, Alabama and Mississippi have all had fatalities as a result of the weather.

One storm shredded through the Arkansas town of Wynne - a community some 100 miles (170km) east of the state capital, Little Rock.

Reuters

Ashley Macmillan said she, her husband and their children huddled with their dogs in a small bathroom as a tornado passed, "praying and saying goodbye to each other, because we thought we were dead".

A falling tree seriously damaged their home, but they were unhurt.

She told the AP news agency: "We could feel the house shaking, we could hear loud noises, dishes rattling. And then it just got calm."

Lisa Worden, a teacher at Wynne High School, said a decision to send pupils home early was critical.

"We got out at 1:30, which was such a God blessing from our superintendent, because otherwise kids would have been on busses and teachers would have still been here. And so that would have been even more devastating," she told Reuters news agency.

Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders declared a state of emergency in the state of Arkansas on Friday, with the national guard activated to help with recovery efforts.

Reuters

She said she had spoken to President Joe Biden about the situation, who promised federal aid.

Friday's storms also led to the collapse of a theatre roof at a packed heavy metal gig in Belvidere, Illinois state, leading to one death and 28 injuries.

As storms continue to work their way east, hundreds of thousands of people are without power across several states.

Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania are the worst affected, according to the US PowerOutage website.

In a bulletin, the Storm Prediction Center warned some of the projected tornadoes could track across the ground for long distances.

EPA

The deadly tornadoes come a week after a rare, long-track twister killed 26 people in Mississippi.

The Mississippi tornado last week travelled 59 miles (94km) and lasted about an hour and 10 minutes - an unusually long period of time for a storm to sustain itself. It damaged about 2,000 homes, officials said.

President Biden visited the state on Friday to pay his condolences.

Related Topics

• Tornadoes
• Indiana
• Arkansas
• Mississippi
• Alabama
• Tennessee
• United States
• Severe weather
• Illinois

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiM2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3dvcmxkLXVzLWNhbmFkYS02NTE1MDEzONIBN2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3dvcmxkLXVzLWNhbmFkYS02NTE1MDEzOC5hbXA?oc=5

2023-04-02 07:31:27Z
CBMiM2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3dvcmxkLXVzLWNhbmFkYS02NTE1MDEzONIBN2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3dvcmxkLXVzLWNhbmFkYS02NTE1MDEzOC5hbXA

Russia assumes UN Security Council presidency despite Ukrainian anger - BBC

Reuters

By George Wright

BBC News

Russia has taken the presidency of the UN Security Council despite Ukraine urging members to block the move.

Each of the council's 15 members takes up the presidency for a month, on a rotating pattern.

The last time Russia had the presidency, February 2022, it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

It means the Security Council is being led by a country whose president is subject to an international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes.

The International Criminal Court - which is not a UN institution - issued the warrant for Vladimir Putin last month.

Despite Ukraine's complaints, the United States said it could not block Russia - a permanent council member - from assuming the presidency.

The other permanent members of the council are the UK, US, France, and China.

The role is mostly procedural, but Moscow's ambassador to the UN, Vasily Nebenzia, told the Russian Tass news agency that he planned to oversee several debates, including one on arms control.

He said he would discuss a "new world order" that, he said, was coming to "replace the unipolar one".

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called Russia's presidency "the worst joke ever for April Fool's Day" and a "stark reminder that something is wrong with the way international security architecture is functioning".

Ukraine's presidential adviser, Mykhaylo Podolyak, said the move was "another rape of international law... an entity that wages an aggressive war, violates the norms of humanitarian and criminal law, destroys the UN Charter, neglects nuclear safety, can't head the world's key security body".

President Volodymyr Zelensky called last year for the Security Council to reform or "dissolve altogether", accusing it of failing to take enough action to prevent Russia's invasion.

He has also called for Russia to be removed of its member status.

• What war crimes is Russia accused of?
• Will Vladimir Putin ever face a war crimes trial?

But the US has said its hands were tied as the UN charter does not allow for the removal of a permanent member.

"Unfortunately, Russia is a permanent member of the Security Council and no feasible international legal pathway exists to change that reality," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told a news briefing this week.

She added the US expects Moscow "to continue to use its seat on the council to spread disinformation" and justify its actions in Ukraine.

The UN Security Council is an international body responsible for maintaining peace.

Five nations are permanently represented on the Security Council. They reflect the post-war power structure that held sway when the council was formed.

Members of this group work alongside 10 non-permanent member countries.

Russia's presence as a permanent member on the Security Council means it can veto resolutions.

To pass a Security Council vote, there must be nine votes in favour, with none of the five permanent members voting against.

In February last year Russia vetoed a resolution that intended to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine (China, India and the United Arab Emirates all abstained).

In September it vetoed a resolution calling for the reversal of its illegal annexation of four regions of Ukraine. Brazil, China, Gabon and India abstained.

This video can not be played

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

Related Topics

• Russia-Ukraine war
• Russia
• United Nations

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiLmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jb20vbmV3cy93b3JsZC1ldXJvcGUtNjUxNDY1NTfSATJodHRwczovL3d3dy5iYmMuY29tL25ld3Mvd29ybGQtZXVyb3BlLTY1MTQ2NTU3LmFtcA?oc=5

2023-04-01 09:27:46Z
1876780524

At least 5 killed in Arkansas tornadoes as storms rip through state - The Independent

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet

Get our free Climate email

At least five people are dead in the wake of devastating tornadoes in Arkansas.

Four people were killed in Wynne, while one person was killed in North Little Rock, according to KARK.

The severe storms swept through the state, flipping cars over and tearing roofs from buildings.

A tornado made its way through the capital city earlier on Friday, with a string of other tornado warnings in place throughout the afternoon as the storm moved east at around 60mph.

A car is upturned in a Kroger parking lot after a severe storm swept through Little Rock, Ark., Friday, March 31, 2023.

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has declared a state of emergency and stated on Twitter, “We will spare no resource to assist with response and recovery efforts for Arkansans impacted.”

Significant damage was reported around the Little Rock metro area, including overturned trees in major roadways, which have caused crashes, according to local news outlet KARK. Traffic was halted in both directions on Interstate 430 due to a crash.

A number of 18-wheeler trucks were reportedly been blown over by high winds, and members of the Little Rock National Weather Service were forced to take shelter while monitoring the storm, according to 4029TV.

A home is damaged and trees are down after a tornado swept through Little Rock, Ark., Friday, March 31, 2023

Drone footage provided by WeatherNation showed the extent of the destruction on Friday. Homes in the path of the twister were reduced to rubble for blocks.

Another video, captured by a resident, captured the massive funnel cloud speeding across the Little Rock metro area.

Other residents shared photos of toppled trees that blocked roadways and crushed the roofs of houses.

Nearly 54,000 customers lost power on Friday afternoon in Pulaski County, where Little Rock is located. It’s unclear how long it will take to restore power.

The tornado is part of a larger storm system covering 15 states in the midwest and the US south. Meteorologists have likened the conditions to those that unleashed powerful tornados last week that killed 21 people in Mississippi, according to the Associated Press.

More than 85 million people were under severe weather warnings earlier on Friday, according to the National Weather Service. Ping-pong ball sized hail was reported in Arkansas, Iowa, and Missouri.

The storms were the most severe along a stretch of the Mississippi River from Wisconsin down to Mississippi. High-risk, severe weather advisories were issued in the Memphis, Davenport, and Quiny areas.

The Chicago area was under a rare significantly severe weather risk, with thunderstorms, hail, high winds, and tornados, according to CBS 4. Blizzard conditions caused by high winds and heavy snow hit the Dakotas as far east as Michigan, according to USA Today.

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMia2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL2NsaW1hdGUtY2hhbmdlL25ld3MvdG9ybmFkby13YXJuaW5nLXNldmVyZS1saXR0bGUtcm9jay1hcmthbnNhcy1iMjMxMjA4MC5odG1s0gFvaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW5kZXBlbmRlbnQuY28udWsvY2xpbWF0ZS1jaGFuZ2UvbmV3cy90b3JuYWRvLXdhcm5pbmctc2V2ZXJlLWxpdHRsZS1yb2NrLWFya2Fuc2FzLWIyMzEyMDgwLmh0bWw_YW1w?oc=5

2023-04-01 12:35:15Z
1885902749

Trump will not appear in court in handcuffs - lawyer - BBC

Reuters

By Robert Plummer & Nada Tawfik

BBC News, London and New York

Donald Trump's court hearing has been set for Tuesday afternoon, according to the BBC's US partner CBS News.

The former president is expected to fly from Florida on his private plane and hand himself in with federal agents there to protect him.

A grand jury has indicted Mr Trump in connection with a $130,000 (£105,000) pay-out to porn star Stormy Daniels.

The charges are not yet public, and a lawyer for Mr Trump said on Friday that he too has yet to read the indictment.

A law enforcement official told CBS that Mr Trump is expected to fly his private plane to New York on Monday before surrendering to officials on Tuesday.

The process is likely to involve dozens or possibly hundreds of Secret Service agents, the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Mr Trump will not be handcuffed, the official added, saying that shackles are typically only used on suspects who are thought to be a flight or safety risk.

• What Trump indictment means - a simple guide

The hearing is due to take place at 14:15 local time (19:15GMT).

Mr Trump's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, told ABC News that Mr Trump will "probably" appear in court on Tuesday, "but nothing is certain".

Prosecutors "will try and get every ounce of publicity they can from this thing", he said, adding "the president will not be put in handcuffs".

"I understand they're going to be closing off blocks around the courthouse, shutting down the courthouse," he continued.

Security is being co-ordinated by the FBI, NYPD, Secret Service and New York City court officers.

Sources tell CBS that they are bracing for possible scenarios that include attacks against Mr Trump, prosecutors, jurors or members of the public. The district attorney's office has received "many threats", the sources said.

Reuters

On Friday morning, the streets around the courthouse were calm but the barricades were going up in anticipation of what may come next week.

Police officers were on patrol and security plans were being put into place. Many expect the area to go into lockdown when the former president attends court.

The district attorney's office had initially asked Mr Trump to surrender on Friday, according to Politico, but the request was rejected because more time was needed for security preparations.

Mr Trump, 76, denies wrongdoing. He is the first serving or former US president to face a criminal charge.

It is unclear how many charges are contained in the indictment, which is still sealed.

• We knew Trump charges were coming - it's still explosive
• This is what will happen when Trump is arrested

Media reports have said the ex-president faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud and Mr Tacopina said on Thursday he thought there would be 34. But on Friday, he said he did not know how many.

"We know what the subject matter is, we know the basis of the charges. We don't know the exact counts or how they're formulated," he said.

On Friday Mr Trump began attacking the judge assigned to his case in an effort to undermine the credibility of the investigation and rally his base to his defence.

Republicans - including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy - have accused the Manhattan district attorney of weaponising the criminal justice system to influence next year's presidential election. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green, who Mr Trump recently suggested should run for Senate, called on followers to protest and said she plans to be present in New York next week.

In response, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the charges had been brought by citizens of New York doing their civic duty - and neither the former president nor Congress could interfere with proceedings.

This video can not be played

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

In Washington, the US Capitol Police, which are tasked with safeguarding lawmakers in Congress, said the force believes protests will take place across the country and have plans in place to increase security at the US Capitol.

In 2016 adult film star Stormy Daniels contacted media outlets offering to sell her account of what she said was an adulterous affair she had with Mr Trump in 2006 - the year after he married his current wife, Melania.

Mr Trump's team got wind of this and his lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid $130,000 to Ms Daniels to keep quiet. This is not illegal.

However, when Mr Trump reimbursed Mr Cohen, the record for the payment says it was for legal fees. Prosecutors say this amounts to Mr Trump falsifying business records, which is a misdemeanour - a criminal offence - in New York.

Getty Images

President Joe Biden declined to comment on the indictment, despite being pressed on the issue by journalists as he left the White House on a trip to Mississippi.

Mr Tacopina said Mr Trump was being "pursued by a prosecutor who has obviously very diverse political views from the president. So it's a very troubling case".

He said the former president was "not worried at all" about the charges.

"He's upset, angry. He's being persecuted politically. That is clear to many people, not only on the Right but on the Left."

Related Topics

• Stormy Daniels
• Donald Trump
• US politics

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiM2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3dvcmxkLXVzLWNhbmFkYS02NTE0MTE1N9IBN2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jby51ay9uZXdzL3dvcmxkLXVzLWNhbmFkYS02NTE0MTE1Ny5hbXA?oc=5

2023-03-31 21:42:16Z
1892737167

Andrew Tate released from prison after three months and put under house arrest - The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails

Sign up to our free breaking news emails

Controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother have been released from prison in Romania and placed under house arrest after winning an appeal over their detention.

The Bucharest Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Tate’s appeal, which challenged a judge’s decision last week to extend his arrest a fourth time for 30 days, an official said.

The investigation into trafficking claims against Andrew and Tristan Tate continues, officials said.

Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate outside the Bucharest Court of Appeal

(via REUTERS)

Tate, who has gained notoriety over the years for peddling misogynistic views, was detained with his brother and two Romanian women in late December on suspicion of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised crime group.

All four won an appeal on Friday, and will remain under house arrest until 29 April, according to Ramona Bolla, a spokesperson for Romania’s anti-organised crime agency, Diicot.

None of the four has yet been charged.

Diicot said in December after the arrests that it had identified six victims in the human-trafficking case who were allegedly subjected to “acts of physical violence and mental coercion” and sexually exploited by members of the alleged crime group.

The agency said victims were lured with pretences of love and later intimidated, placed under surveillance and subjected to other control tactics while being coerced into engaging in pornographic acts for the financial gain of the crime group.

Tate, a 36-year-old British-US citizen who has 5.4 million Twitter followers, last month lost an appeal against further detention.

He has repeatedly claimed Romanian prosecutors have no evidence, and alleged their case is a political conspiracy designed to silence him.

The former professional kickboxer, who has lived in Romania since 2017, was previously banned from various social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views and hate speech.

Before he was banned from Instagram, Tate had a following on the platform of 4.6 million.

He has different “business ventures” such as Hustler’s University, an online “academy” where members pay a monthly membership fee.

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiYGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3Mvd29ybGQvZXVyb3BlL2FuZHJldy10YXRlLXByaXNvbi1yb21hbmlhLXJlbGVhc2UtYjIzMTIwNjEuaHRtbNIBZGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3Mvd29ybGQvZXVyb3BlL2FuZHJldy10YXRlLXByaXNvbi1yb21hbmlhLXJlbGVhc2UtYjIzMTIwNjEuaHRtbD9hbXA?oc=5

2023-03-31 23:09:36Z
1881723488

Trump's indictment is sending shockwaves across the political landscape - bbc.com

This video can not be played

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

By Anthony Zurcher

North America correspondent

@awzurcher

As the first former US president to face criminal charges, Donald Trump will also be the first to be fingerprinted, taken for a mugshot and brought before a judge.

If the case proceeds as expected, he will be the first US president to sit before a jury.

Already the shockwaves are spreading across the political landscape.

Some aspects are predictable - the former president, his lawyers and his children are denouncing the yet-to-be-detailed charges as political persecution.

They see it as an attempt to disrupt the campaign of a frontrunner for the presidency in 2024.

At Mr Trump's political rally in Texas last Saturday, the former president was already fixated on an arrest that seemed to be looming.

• This is what will happen when Trump is arrested
• A blow to America's sense of self

"This is really prosecutorial misconduct," Mr Trump said of the New York City district attorney's inquiry. "The innocence of people makes no difference to these radical left maniacs."

Republicans close ranks

As the news broke, other members of the Republican Party closed ranks around their former president.

Several senior members of the House of Representatives called the indictment "outrageous" and pledged a thorough congressional investigation.

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy said the New York district attorney had "irreparably damaged" the nation in an attempt to interfere with the 2024 presidential election.

Several of Mr Trump's potential rivals for the Republic nomination condemned the charges.

"Prosecuting serious crimes keeps Americans safe, but political prosecutions put the American legal system at risk of being viewed as a tool for abuse," former Trump Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement.

Getty Images

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, viewed as Mr Trump's most formidable potential opponent, was equally strident in a Twitter post, calling the indictment "un-American".

"The weaponisation of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head," he wrote.

He added that Florida would not assist in an extradition of Mr Trump to New York to face the charges.

Mr Trump's lawyers have previously said he would go to the courthouse willingly - something expected to happen early next week.

A delicate balance for Trump's rivals

At some point, however, Mr Trump's rivals will have to turn on him - and a lower-profile potential candidate may have given a hint of the strategy in his Thursday evening press release.

"It is a dark day for America when a former president is indicted on criminal charges," former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson said, noticeably not calling the indictment unjust.

Donald Trump has surged in Republican approval polls recently, but there is still sentiment that his drama - the political storm clouds that always seem to follow him - is a liability that will make him a less appealing presidential candidate.

For that line of attack, this indictment could become Exhibit A, noted by his Republican opponents more with sadness than with glee.

Getty Images

For its part, the Trump campaign is leaning into the controversy, using the front-page headlines and breaking news bulletins to drum up new donations from supporters.

"Please make a contribution - of truly any amount - to defend our movement from the never-ending witch hunts and WIN the WHITE HOUSE in 2024," read a campaign email that included Mr Trump's press release on the indictment. It promised that the indictment would "backfire" on President Joe Biden and the Democrats.

Biden keeps his silence

At least so far, the White House has been keeping a studious silence on the matter - similar to the strategy it employed during Mr Trump's 2021 Senate impeachment trial after the 6 January attack on the US Capitol.

Their view, perhaps, aligns with the old Napoleon quote about not interrupting an enemy when they're making a mistake.

Other Democrats, however, have been less reticent.

"The bedrock of our legal system is the principle that justice applies to everyone equally," Democratic Senator Cory Booker said in a statement. "No-one is above the law."

Getty Images

The Democratic National Committee's press secretary tried to link Mr Trump and his legal troubles to the former president's "Make America Great Again" movement and the Republican Party as a whole.

Democrats, and many political analysts, attribute the party's better-than-expected performance in last year's mid-term elections to Republican candidates being too closely associated with a former president who, while still loved by many Republicans, is disliked by a majority of Americans.

Expect Democrats to once again employ a similar line of attack.

Mr Trump's current legal drama may reach a crescendo and conclude well before a vote is cast in 2024. The political fallout could ultimately depend on the course it tracks - and whether this case is joined by others.

For the moment, however, the partisan lines on Mr Trump's indictment are clearly drawn - as they have been on almost every major issue of national importance in America today.

Related Topics

• Republican Party
• Donald Trump
• United States

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiMWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmJiYy5jb20vbmV3cy93b3JsZC11cy1jYW5hZGEtNjUxMDY3NjfSATVodHRwczovL3d3dy5iYmMuY29tL25ld3Mvd29ybGQtdXMtY2FuYWRhLTY1MTA2NzY3LmFtcA?oc=5

2023-03-31 11:23:54Z
1882519002