- Israel prevents Catholic leaders from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at Jerusalem church politico.com
- Catholic Leaders Barred From Jerusalem Holy Site on Palm Sunday The New York Times
- Cardinal Parolin meets Israel’s ambassador, expresses regret over Holy Sepulchre incident Vatican News
- Palm Sunday: Cardinal Pizzaballa blocked by Israeli police from Holy Sepulchre as Pope Leo denounces war in Rome America Magazine
- Israel blocks cardinal from Jerusalem's Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday, sparking outcry Reuters
Pope seems to rebuke Trump in remarks about leaders with ‘hands full of blood’
Pontiff’s unusually pointed comments come after Pete Hegseth’s prayer for violence against enemies ‘who deserve no mercy’
Pope Leo has said God ignores the prayers of leaders who wage war and have “hands full of blood”, in an apparent rebuke to the Trump administration.
The pontiff made the comments on Sunday as thousands of US troops arrived in the Middle East and days after the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, prayed for violence against enemies who deserved “no mercy”.
Continue reading...Keir Starmer to launch local elections campaign with focus on cost of living
PM will also cite Iran war as reason to stick with Labour, as party adopts new slogan: ‘Pride in Britain’
Keir Starmer will say that a vote for Reform UK will put at risk progress Labour is making on the cost of living, arguing that Britain’s values are being tested in a volatile world.
Launching the party’s local elections campaign with a new slogan: “Pride in Britain”, Starmer will urge voters to stay the course with Labour. A dire set of results are predicted for the party in Wales, Scotland and English councils, especially in the north-east of England and London.
Continue reading...Thieves steal Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse paintings in three-minute Italian heist
The paintings were taken from a museum in Parma by four masked men in the middle of the night, police say.
Educated and employed but still struggling: India’s middle class under strain
Once aspirational, India's middle class today are finding fewer avenues for their ambition.
Sperm Whale Birth Filmed For The First Time Reveals Astonishing Group Behavior – Indian Defence Review
- Sperm Whale Birth Filmed For The First Time Reveals Astonishing Group Behavior Indian Defence Review
- Description of a collaborative sperm whale birth and shifts in coda vocal styles during key events | Scientific Reports Nature
- Scientists Filmed a Whale Birth. The Surprise: Mom Had Many Helpers. The New York Times
- Scientists film whale giving birth while other whales work together to help her The Guardian
- The Astonishing Lessons of a Sperm-Whale Birth The New Yorker
Chesney the kangaroo found three days after hopping away from farm
Marsupial escaped from enclosure at Wisconsin’s Sunshine Farm on Wednesday after he was spooked by stray dogs
How does a kangaroo escape a petting zoo?
It’s not the opening line to a dad joke. If you’re Chesney the kangaroo, you scale an 8ft (2.5-meter) fence and go on the lam for three days, giving your keeper sleepless nights and sending residents of a small Wisconsin town on a search that would end happily on Saturday.
Continue reading...Israeli police bar priest from Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday
Christians in Jerusalem marked Holy Week under wartime restrictions as Israeli police blocked the Latin Patriarch.
Stranded humpback whale in Germany’s Baltic Sea weakens as hopes of its return to the Atlantic fade – PBS
- Stranded humpback whale in Germany's Baltic Sea weakens as hopes of its return to the Atlantic fade PBS
- Struggling humpback whale stranded for third time on German coast The Guardian
- Germany news: Rescuers launch fresh whale rescue effort dw.com
- Humpback whale 'Timmy' struggles to escape shallow waters off Germany reuters.com
- Video: Stranded Humpback Whale Beats the Odds and Swims Out to Sea The New York Times
A premature ceasefire risks ‘another round of conflict’ in future
‘Any flawed or imperfect conclusion of the battle could have consequences just as severe as the continuation of the war'
A premature ceasefire risks ‘another round of conflict’ in future
‘Any flawed or imperfect conclusion of the battle could have consequences just as severe as the continuation of the war'
Iranian ambassador refuses to leave Lebanon after being declared persona non grata, AFP reveals – Yahoo
- Iranian ambassador refuses to leave Lebanon after being declared persona non grata, AFP reveals Yahoo
- Iran says envoy will remain in Beirut, defying order to leave reuters.com
- Iran says its expelled ambassador won’t leave Lebanon as political tensions soar AP News
- A Bizarre Diplomatic Showdown Tests the Lebanese Government’s Waning Authority New Lines Magazine
- Iran says its ambassador to Lebanon will stay in country despite Beirut’s order to leave The Times of Israel
‘Double standards’: Instagram removes Erin O’Connor’s pregnancy photos again
Model posted pictures of herself naked and ‘in her full power’ to celebrate Mother’s Day, before Meta took them down for breaching nudity guidelines
The model Erin O’Connor has spoken out about the need for social media platforms to apply “clearer, more context-sensitive guidelines” after Instagram repeatedly removed two nude photographs she had posted on Mother’s Day, celebrating her heavily pregnant body.
The photos – which were removed, reinstated and then removed again by the platform – were taken in 2014 when O’Connor, who is 48, was eight and half months’ pregnant with her son Albert.
Continue reading...IRGC spokesperson says Trump ‘only understands the language of force’
IRGC spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari dismisses threats of US ground operations.
IRGC spokesperson says Trump ‘only understands the language of force’
IRGC spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari dismisses threats of US ground operations.
Qatari TV station hit in Iran
Qatar’s Al Araby network condemns an attack on its office in Tehran, which injured at least 10 people.
China’s neighbor’s 9,500-ton destroyer gets equipped with US’ powerful Tomahawk missiles – Interesting Engineering
Hundreds Gather for Funeral of 3 Lebanese Killed in Israeli Strike – The New York Times
- Hundreds Gather for Funeral of 3 Lebanese Killed in Israeli Strike The New York Times
- Israel kills 3 journalists in Lebanon, including reporter for Hezbollah-run broadcaster CNN
- Israel posts fake photo of journalist it killed in strike Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- Israeli airstrike kills three Lebanese journalists, Israel says it targeted one reuters.com
- Israeli Strike Kills 3 Journalists in Southern Lebanon, Officials Say The New York Times
Iranian missile attack sparks blaze in chemical plant, fears of hazardous leak – The Times of Israel
- Iranian missile attack sparks blaze in chemical plant, fears of hazardous leak The Times of Israel
- ADAMA chemicals plant in southern Israel hit by Iranian missile or debris Reuters
- Officials checking possibility of hazardous materials leak at factory hit by Iranian missile; public told to stay away The Times of Israel
- Iran’s missiles pierce Israel’s defenses, raising doubts about interceptors The Washington Post
- Iranian missile hit on Ne'ot Hovav factory leads to fear of chemical leakage The Jerusalem Post
DHS funding freeze now longest partial government shutdown in US history
If the now six-week partial shutdown continues after the weekend, it will become the longest of any shutdown
The shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the fourth-largest agency in the US government, became the longest partial shutdown in US history on Sunday.
If the now six-week partial shutdown continues after the weekend, it will also become the longest of any shutdown, surpassing the impasse late last year that dragged on for 43 days.
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