Foreign News
Breaking: Pope Francis Appoints Tanzanian, 12 Others Cardinals
Catholic Pontif, Francis, on Sunday noon announced the appointment of 13 new Cardinals for the Church, among them, an African, Archbishop Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, o.f.m. cap – Archbishop of Kinshasa, Tanzanian.- Pope Francis read names of the prelates who will receive the red hat on October 5, the vigil of the Amazon Synod.
After reciting the Angelus in St Peter’s Square on Sunday, Pope Francis announced a consistory to be held on October 5, for the nomination of 10 new Cardinals, Vatican media said. - He said that the places where these new Cardinals come from express the missionary vocation of the Church as she continues to announce the merciful love of God to every person on earth. The names of the new Cardinals are: 1. Bishop Miguel Angel Ayuso Guixot, mccj – President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. 2. Archbishop José Tolentino Medonça – Archivist and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church 3. Archbishop Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo – Archbishop of Jakarta 4. Archbishop Juan de la Caridad García Rodríguez – Archbishop de San Cristóbal of Havana 5. Archbishop Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, o.f.m. cap – Archbishop of Kinshasa 6. Archbishop Jean-Claude Höllerich, sj – Archbishop of Luxembourg 7. Bishop Alvaro L. Ramazzini Imeri – Bishop di Huehuetenamgo 8. Archbishop Matteo Zuppi – Archbishop of Bologna. 9. Archbishop Cristóbal López Romero, sdb – Archbishop of Rabat 10. Father Michael Czerny, sj – Undersecretary of the Migrants and Refugees Section of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Development.
- Reports also said the Pope is added two Archbishops and a Bishop who have served the Church in a distinguished way: These include: 1. Archbishop Michael Louis Fitzgerald – Archbishop Emeritus of Nepte. 2. Archbishop Sigitas Tamkevicius, sj – Archbishop Emeritus of Kaunas 3. Bishop Eugenio Dal Corso, psdp – Bishop Emeritus of Benguela.
- “Let us pray for the new Cardinals so that, confirming their adhesion to Christ, they might help in my ministry as Bishop of Rome for the good of all the faithful Holy People of God,” the Pope was quoted to have said.
Foreign News
Russian Army Fires Ballistic Missiles at Kiev from Crimean Peninsula
The Russian Army has hit the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, with ballistic missiles, injuring four people and damaging an uninhabited three-storey building, according to officials.
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that two of the injured people were in a central neighbourhood and had been taken to hospital.
Rocket debris also fell in two other neighbourhoods.
According to the Ukrainian air force, two ballistic missiles were fired at the city of millions, from the Russian-controlled Crimea Peninsula.
Both were shot down.Half a dozen explosions from anti-aircraft missiles had previously been heard in the city centre.
The air raid warning was only triggered a few seconds beforehand, it said.
Ukraine has been facing Russian invasion for over two years.
Since then, the Ukrainian air defence system has been massively reinforced with Western systems. (dpa/NAN)
Foreign News
Cambodia Arrests 2 Foreigners for Smuggling 2.27 kg Narcotics
Cambodian customs police at the Phnom Penh International Airport said they have arrested two South Korean nationals for an attempt to smuggle 2.27 kg narcotics to South Korea.
The duo, a man and woman, were caught Sunday night while they checked in for a ZA215 flight bound for Seoul.
The General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia said in a news release on Monday.
In their body searches, our customs officials found many packs of drugs wrapped around their waists, the news release said.
“As a result, some 1.29 kg of crystal methamphetamine and 0.98 kg of ketamine were seized from the two suspects’ possession.’’
The Southeast Asian country has no death sentence for a drug trafficker.
Under its law, someone found guilty of trafficking more than 80 grammes of illicit drugs could be jailed for life.
According to the country’s Anti-Drug Department (ADP), Cambodia nabbed 3,899 drug-related suspects, including 106 foreigners, in 1,659 cases from Jan. 1 to March 3, 2024.
According to the report they confiscated a total of 2.79 tonnes of narcotics.
Most of the seized drugs were ketamine, crystal methamphetamine, methamphetamine tablets, heroin, ecstasy, and cocaine. (Xinhua/NAN)
Foreign News
February Ends with Extreme Heat – WMO
The UN weather agency, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), says February saw more extreme heat and unusually high temperatures in both hemispheres.
Summarising the state of the climate, it said the month ended with extreme heat in the southern hemisphere where it is summer, while high temperatures atypical of the northern hemisphere winter prevailed.
Parts of North and South America, northwest and southeast Africa, southeast and far eastern Asia, western Australia and Europe all saw record-breaking temperatures, either on a daily basis or for all of February.
“The anomalous heat is consistent with the persisting warming observed since June 2023, with seven consecutive new global monthly temperature records, including January 2024,” Alvaro Silva, a climatologist working with the WMO, said in a statement.
Global sea surface temperatures were record high. While the El Niño weather pattern “has stoked temperatures in some parts of the world, human induced climate change is the long-term major contributing factor,” he added.
Conversely, a large part of northwestern Canada, central Asia – and from southern central Siberia to southeastern China – witnessed exceptional cold during the last week of the month.
The meteorological winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the southern hemisphere finished officially at the end of February.
Meanwhile, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) raised increasing concern on Friday that more refugees would cross into Chad from Darfur in the coming weeks amid a worrying lack of food and other essentials.
Almost a year since the start of the civil war between rival militaries in Sudan, neighbouring Chad urgently needs more humanitarian aid and significant development investment, the agency reported, especially in its eastern areas which are hosting the refugee influx.
This investment will allow the country to continue its generous open-door stance towards refugees.
“Chadian officials are concerned that many more hungry Sudanese families will come in the next weeks,” said Kelly Clements, UNHCR’s Deputy High Commissioner, who is in the country to review the relief operation.
“The country is committed to keeping its borders open, despite the fragility of this region.
“But, doing so will put even more strain on Chad, which has so graciously been hosting refugees from Sudan’s war – now raging almost a year – and other refugees still here from earlier emergencies.” (NAN)