Vatican & World News

In the headlines, this Saturday, August 16th:

- Russia's President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump hold summit in Alaska

- The UN decries 1,760 killed in Gaza while trying to collect emergency food

- Cardinal Pietro Parolin presides over Mass in Burundi

 - Pope Leo celebrates Mass for the feast of the Assumption in Castel Gandolfo

 - The UN denounces an Israeli plan to increase settlements in the West Bank as contrary to international law

 - Ahead of talks between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, Russia continues air raids on Ukraine

-   Uruguay’s bishops' conference issues a statement after a bill approving euthanasia passes in the House of Representatives.

-   Over 100 aid organizations sign a joint letter calling on Israel to end what they describe as the “weaponization of aid” into Gaza.

-   The Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the Organization of American States reaffirms its closeness to all indigenous peoples at a commemoration of the International Day of Indigenous Peoples.

-   Outrage grows across the globe after five Al Jazeera journalists are killed in an Israeli missile strike

-   Colombia’s bishops mourn Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, a presidential hopeful who was shot at a political rally in June

-   The Holy See and Burundi mark 60 years of diplomatic ties

 - Five Al Jazeera reporters are killed in an attack by the Israeli military

 - Western nations insist Ukraine must be involved in any peace talks with Russia

 - The Red Cross warns that over three million people in Nigeria are at risk of food insecurity

-   Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a deal on the renaming of a contested regional trade route

-   A heatwave strikes Gaza, exacerbating famine and starvation in the strip.

-   Eighty years after the division of the Korean Peninsula, the region’s bishops speak of their desire for unity

 

-   Israel’s proposed occupation of Gaza draws sharp criticism from international leaders and the families of hostages

-   Following a series of attacks on Christian sites in Indonesia, the country’s bishops urge the government to take firm action against intolerance

-   With online scams on the rise in Vietnam, the Catholic Church aims to help young people avoid online human trafficking

- Pope Leo XIV meets a group of Venetian pilgrims, including three prison inmates, in Rome for the Holy Year

- The United Nations calls for the immediate and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief into the Gaza Strip, where Palestinians are dying of starvation

- Religious Sisters from across the globe invite all men and women of goodwill to join in a Day of Prayer and Fasting for Peace