At two o'clock in the morning, an air strike from the Mediterranean, west of Latakia, hit Syria's second airport. A key centre for the delivery of basic necessities to the populations hit by the earthquake on 6 February, which caused 6,000 deaths and over 500,000 homeless. Damascus speaks of "enemy missiles", no comment from Israel.
Today's headlines: Philippine coast guard spotted over 40 Beijing ships in a disputed area of the South China Sea; Pakistani police serve arrest warrants on former premier Imran Khan; Qatari emir 'perplexed' over delays in aid to post-earthquake Syria; illegal pangolin sales increase in Laos.
The new Syro-Catholic archbishop is set to be formally ordained tomorrow in a region that for years had no pastor or resident priests. Yet, the community was able to survive. For months, the Islamic State group held the new prelate captive along with scores of parishioners. One of his priorities is “to renew the theological and biblical education” of priests.
Nabil Antaki, a doctor in Aleppo, slams Western sanctions that have led to a different emergency response in Syria and Turkey. People "are desperate"; the displaced need of a roof. In the early stages, machinery and rescue teams that did not come could have saved lives. For Europe and the United States, this is a disgrace.
The Vicar of Anatolia visited what can be considered the centre most affected by the earthquake on 6 February. The first cases of cholera are beginning to emerge and the risk of 'health infections' is high. People flee as public attention wanes. Earthquake and death at sea of migrants, as happened yesterday in Italy, inter-connected problems: we need a 'global vision'.
The pontiff makes his appeal during a meeting in the Vatican with a group of young priests and monks from Eastern Orthodox Churches. Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti talks about his visit to Aleppo where he expressed the pope’s closeness to earthquake survivors, like “the elderly, left alone at home” without help, and people in Idlib where supplies are hard to deliver. But “once the emergency is overcome”, the future must be rebuilt for everyone.
