The Vatican press office released a photo of Pope Francis on Sunday in a private chapel of Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he continues to receive treatment. The photo shows the 88-year-old pontiff seated in his wheelchair in front of an altar. It is the first photo released of the pope since he entered the hospital on Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia. Pope Francis on Sunday, March 16,…

Dozens of people were killed when a fire ripped through an illegal nightclub in North Macedonia’s southern city of Kocani, prompting a bribery and corruption investigation that has led to the arrests of several local officials who allegedly allowed the club to remain open, authorities said Sunday. At least 59 people — all aged 18 to 23 — were killed and 155 others injured, North Macedonian Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski…

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have vowed to meet “escalation with escalation” after a wave of deadly US air strikes, with witnesses to the bombing saying Sunday they were taken aback by its intensity, even after years of war. US President Donald Trump said he had ordered the strikes and threatened more were to come if the rebels kept up their repeated attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea and…

Violent tornadoes ripped through parts of the US, wiping out schools and toppling semitractor-trailers in several states, part of a monster storm that killed at least 26 people as more severe weather was expected late Saturday. In western Kansas, a dust storm was reported to have killed eight people as high winds produced blowing dust over the interstate, causing collisions of more than 55 vehicles on the I-70. In Mississippi,…

President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at gutting the parent of U.S. government-funded media outlet, Voice of America and six other federal agencies, his administration’s latest step to shrink bureaucracy on Friday. The order instructs the agencies — largely little-known entities including one that provides funding for museums and libraries and one tackling homelessness — to reduce their operations to the bare minimum mandated by the law. “This…

A delivery driver has won $50 million in a lawsuit after being seriously burned when a Starbucks drink spilled in his lap at a California drive-through, court records show. A Los Angeles County jury found Friday for Michael Garcia, who underwent skin grafts and other procedures on his genitals after a venti-sized tea drink spilled instants after he collected it on Feb. 8, 2020. He has suffered permanent and life-changing…

At least 17 people have been killed across the US as a storm system unleashed multiple tornadoes that struck across several states in the south and midwest, officials said. On Saturday, the Missouri state highway patrol reported three deaths in Ozark county, one death in Butler county, six deaths in Wayne county and one death in Jefferson county. “We urge residents to stay away from debris-filled areas, watch for downed…

The Trump administration is considering issuing travel restrictions for the citizens of dozens of countries as part of a new ban, according to sources familiar with the matter and an internal memo seen by Reuters. The memo lists a total of 41 countries divided into three separate groups. The first group of 10 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Cuba and North Korea, among others, would be set for a full…

In different ways, new podcast hosts Gavin Newsom and Michelle Obama are picking up where Kamala Harris left off The current condition of the Democratic Party is nothing if not uncertain. Paralysing anxiety and insecurity are clearly its present state, but glimpses into its possible future are beginning to appear, albeit not from among the party’s troubled leadership in Congress. Case in point, recent machinations from both former first lady…

As a podcaster and freelance journalist, Ole Nymoen admits he enjoys freedom of expression and other democratic rights in his home country of Germany. But he would not want to die for them. In a book published this week, Why I Would Never Fight for My Country, the 27-year-old argues ordinary people should not be sent into battle on behalf of nation states and their rulers — even to…

By Fatimah Idera As Brazil prepares to host the COP30 climate summit in Belém this November, a four-lane highway is being constructed through tens of thousands of acres of the Amazon rainforest. The road is intended to ease traffic congestion for the more than 50,000 attendees expected at the conference. The Brazilian government has defended the project as a “sustainable” development initiative, despite the irony of clearing rainforests for a…

Top diplomats from the Group of Seven (G7) leading democracies urged Russia on Friday to accept a U.S.-proposed ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war or face the possibility of additional sanctions. “We called for Russia to reciprocate by agreeing to a ceasefire on equal terms and implementing it fully,” the diplomats said in a joint statement from the site of their talks talks in Canada. “We discussed imposing further costs on…