40,000 welcome Pope Prevost in St Peter’s Square for his first public audience. Tour in the popemobile amid cheers and flags from Lebanon, Ukraine, and peace movements. Leo XIV continues the catechetical series “Jesus Our Hope”, begun by Francis for the Jubilee. A renewed appeal for “dignified humanitarian aid” to Gaza: “We are called to sow hope and build peace.”
In an interview with AsiaNews, Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako reflects on the days of the Conclave spent alongside the new pontiff and their “very important” first meeting after the election. He describes the “complicated situation” facing Christians in the Middle East, who suffer from a “lack of stability” despite some improvements in security. His first words to Pope Prevost: “We are counting on you.”
The government in Tbilisi is proudly touting Georgia’s buoyant GDP figures, claiming that the economy has tripled in recent years thanks to its own policies. However, the real driving force behind this surge has been the indirect effects of the war in Ukraine. Around 100,000 Russians have fled to Georgia to escape Putin’s mobilisation, and the boom in less visible sectors of the economy—such as trade triangulation to bypass sanctions against Moscow and surrogacy clinics—has fuelled further growth.
Today’s headlines: At least four children killed in suicide bombing targeting a bus in Pakistan; Three dead due to flooding in Bengaluru, India’s Silicon Valley; North Korean authorities aim to block calls to Seoul via Chinese phones; In Cambodia, environmental journalist arrested over deforestation report.
The reporter, whose identity has not been released, is accused of obstructing the Election Commission with an article claiming that 99 Chinese spies had been moved from South Korea to Japan after former President Yoon declared martial law. The affair reflects the tense climate of the presidential election campaign. Meanwhile, the leader of the Democratic Party Lee Jae-myung continues to be ahead in the polls.
After 2,454 days unjustly behind bars, the former senator and minister of Justice is back in Congress, in the House of Representatives this time. With the opposition party, Mamamayang Liberal (ML), she will challenge the political oligarchies of the Duterte and Marcos clans. For the families of the victims of the war on drugs, she represents hope for justice. Hers is “A fragile mandate that carries the weight of people’s hopes”.
