-
Crowds flock to Pope Francis tomb, as eyes turn to conclave
VATICAN CITY (AFP) -- Pope Francis's modest tomb drew massive queues on the first day of public viewing in Rome on Sunday, a day after an estimated 400,000 people turned out for his funeral and burial. Thousands flocked to Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica -- Francis's final resting place -- in another testament to the popularity of the Argentinian, who died aged 88 on Monday. An energetic reformer who championed the poorest and most vulnerable, Francis is credited with reinvigorating the Catholic C
April 27, 2025 -
Police say 9 people were killed when a car plowed into a Vancouver street festival crowd
VANCOUVER (AP) -- At least nine people were killed when a man drove into a crowd at a Filipino heritage festival in the Canadian city of Vancouver , and an unknown number were injured, police said Sunday. The vehicle entered the street at 8:14 p.m. on Saturday and struck people attending the Lapu Lapu Day festival, the Vancouver Police Department said in a social media post. Several other people were injured but the exact number of casualties was not immediately available. A 30-year-old Vancouve
April 27, 2025 -
Several killed as driver plows into Vancouver festival crowd
VANCOUVER (AFP) — Canadian police arrested a man on Saturday after a car plowed into a street party in the western city of Vancouver killing a number of people. Authorities said the incident happened shortly after 8 p.m. in Vancouver's Sunset on Fraser neighborhood as members of the Filipino community gathered to celebrate Lapu Lapu Day. The festival, which commemorates a Filipino anti-colonial leader from the 16th century, falls this year on the weekend before Canada's election. A 30-year-old l
April 27, 2025 -
Hamas open to 5-year truce, one-time hostages release
CAIRO (AFP) — Hamas is open to an agreement to end the war in Gaza that would see all hostages released and secure a five-year truce, an official said Saturday as the group's negotiators held talks with mediators. A Hamas delegation visited Cairo to discuss with Egyptian mediators ways out of the 18-month war while, on the ground, rescuers said Israeli strikes in Gaza killed at least 35 people. Nearly eight weeks into an Israeli aid blockade, the United Nations says food and medical supplies are
April 27, 2025 -
Trump says US ships need free travel through Panama, Suez
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged free transit for American commercial and military ships through the Panama and Suez canals, tasking his secretary of state with making progress "immediately." Trump has for months been calling for the United States to take control of the Panama Canal but his social media post also shifted focus onto the vital Suez route. "American Ships, both Military and Commercial, should be allowed to travel, free of charge, through the Panama an
April 27, 2025 -
Trump says US ships need free travel through Panama, Suez
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged free transit for American commercial and military ships through the Panama and Suez canals, tasking his secretary of state with making progress "immediately." Trump has for months been calling for the United States to take control of the Panama Canal but his social media post also shifted focus onto the vital Suez route. "American Ships, both Military and Commercial, should be allowed to travel, free of charge, through the Panama an
April 27, 2025 -
Iran and the US hold hours of expert talks in Oman over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program
MUSCAT, Oman (AP) — Iran and the United States held in-depth negotiations in Oman over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program on Saturday, ending the discussions with a promise for more talks and perhaps another high-level meeting next weekend. The talks ran for several hours in Muscat, the mountain-wrapped capital of this sultanate on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state television after the talks that the parties exchanged written po
April 27, 2025 -
US has nearly 900 measles cases, and 10 states have active outbreaks
With one-fifth of states seeing active measles outbreaks, the US is nearing 900 cases, according to figures posted Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC's confirmed measles cases count is 884, triple the amount seen in all of 2024. The vast majority — 646 — are in Texas, where an outbreak in the western part of the state that's approaching the three-month mark. Two unvaccinated elementary school-aged children died from measles-related illnesses in the epicenter in
April 27, 2025 -
Pakistan calls for neutral probe into Kashmir attack India blames it for
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) — Pakistan called on Saturday for a "neutral" investigation into the killings of mostly Indian tourists in Kashmir that New Delhi has blamed on Islamabad, saying it was willing to cooperate and favored peace. India has identified two of the three suspected militants as Pakistani, though Islamabad has denied any role in the attack on Tuesday that killed 25 Indian and one Nepali tourists. "Pakistan is fully prepared to cooperate with any neutral investigators to ensur
April 27, 2025 -
A massive explosion at an Iranian port linked to missile fuel shipment kills 14, injures some 750
MUSCAT, Oman (AP) — A massive explosion and fire rocked a port Saturday in southern Iran purportedly linked to a shipment of a chemical ingredient used to make missile propellant, killing 14 people and injuring around 750 others. Helicopters dumped water from the air on the raging fire hours after the initial explosion, which happened at the Shahid Rajaei port just as Iran and the United States met Saturday in Oman for the third round of negotiations over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear progr
April 27, 2025 -
Only about half of Republicans say Trump has focused on the right priorities, AP-NORC poll finds
WASHINGTON (AP) — Many Americans do not agree with President Trump's aggressive efforts to quickly enact his agenda, a new poll finds, and even Republicans are not overwhelmingly convinced that his attention has been in the right place. Americans are nearly twice as likely to say Trump has been mostly focusing on the wrong priorities as to say he has been focusing on the right ones, according to the survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Further, about 4 in 10
April 27, 2025 -
Trump raises Putin doubts after Zelenskyy talks
ROME (AFP) — US President Donald Trump cast doubt on whether Russian leader Vladimir Putin wants a peace deal, shortly after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the hush of St. Peter's Basilica before Pope Francis' funeral on Saturday. Zelenskyy said they had discussed a possible unconditional ceasefire with Russia and was "hoping for results" from a "very symbolic meeting that has the potential to become historic." This was the two leaders' first meeting since a noisy White House
April 27, 2025 -
Epstein, Prince Andrew accuser Virginia Giuffre dies by suicide
SYDNEY (AFP) -- Virginia Giuffre, who accused disgraced US financier Jeffrey Epstein and Britain's Prince Andrew of sexual abuse, has taken her own life at her home in Australia, her family said Saturday. Giuffre, a US and Australian citizen, was 41. "It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia," the family said in a statement provided to Agence France-Presse by her agent. "She lost her life to suicide, after being a lif
April 27, 2025 -
Royalty and presidents joining multitude of mourners at Pope Francis' funeral
Royalty, presidents, prime ministers and a legion of faithful will pay their last respects to Pope Francis on Saturday at a funeral Mass in St. Peter's Square to honour his sometimes turbulent papacy. Among those attending from more than 150 countries will be U.S. President Donald Trump, who clashed with Francis on numerous occasions over their starkly contrasting positions on immigration. The Argentine pope died on Monday, aged 88, following a stroke, ushering in a meticulously planned period o
April 26, 2025 -
EU slaps fines on Apple and Meta, risking Trump fury
BRUSSELS (AFP) — The EU on Wednesday slapped Apple and Meta with 700 million euros ($795 million) in fines for breaking digital competition rules, risking the wrath of US President Donald Trump. The penalties threaten to cause more tension in the already fraught relationship between the bloc and Trump, as the two sides discuss a deal to avoid his sweeping tariffs on the EU. The European Commission fined Apple 500 million euros after concluding the company prevented developers from steering custo
April 24, 2025