(LONDON) — North Korean authorities confirmed for the first time that the country’s forces fought against Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk region, with state media claiming “victory” there and describing the North Korean soldiers involved as “heroic.”
The official acknowledgment came as Russian President Vladimir Putin also praised North Korean troops for their contribution in the theater, saying in a statement posted to the Kremlin website that Moscow’s “Korean friends” fought “with honor and valor, covering themselves with unfading glory.”
“The Russian people will never forget the feat of the Korean special forces,” Putin added. “We will always honor the Korean heroes who gave their lives for Russia, for our common freedom, on an equal basis with their Russian brothers in arms.”
In a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency, North Korea’s Central Military Commission confirmed Monday its troops took part in the Russian operation to eject Ukrainian units from Kursk.
Fighting erupted there after Kyiv’s forces entered the border region in a surprise offensive in August 2024. It was the largest Ukrainian operation on Russian territory since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The military commission lauded North Korean units fighting in Kursk for “performing heroic feats in the operations to repulse and frustrate the grave sovereignty infringement by the Ukrainian authorities.”
This weekend, top Russian commander Valery Gerasimov said Russia had fully liberated Kursk after months of intensifying assaults on remaining Ukrainian positions there. Gerasimov praised North Korea units for “significant assistance.”
The North Korean committee said the involvement of its soldiers — which according to various U.S., Ukrainian and South Korean assistance involved at least 10,000 troops — “fully demonstrated their high fighting spirit and military temperament,” with “mass heroism, matchless bravery and self-sacrificing spirit.”
In a statement carried by KCNA, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said fighters in Kursk were “heroes” who “fought for justice.” A monument to the Kursk contingent would be erected in Pyongyang, Kim added.
“The motherland should hand down forever the soul of the soldiers who fought to defend its great honour and take important state measures to specially and preferentially treat and take care of the families of the brave soldiers who participated in the war,” Kim continued.
North Korean units entering the fighting in Kursk quickly sustained casualties, according to estimates by Ukraine-aligned governments.
British intelligence assessed that by March roughly 5,000 North Korean troops deployed to fight Ukraine had been killed or wounded, with a third likely killed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Kyrylo Budanov — the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence — both said in February that North Korean troops had suffered about 4,000 casualties.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said in March that North Korean forces had suffered around 5,000 casualties, according to the Yonhap news agency, South Korea’s state media.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — An American overnight airstrike in Yemen killed at least 68 people at a migrant detention center in the Saada Governorate, according to the country’s Civil Defense organization.
Another 47 people were injured in the strike in the city of Saada, in the northwest of the country, the Yemen Civil Defense said in a statement posted to Telegram on Monday morning.
The struck center housed around 100 African migrants, the Yemen Civil Defense said. There was no immediate U.S. comment on the strike.
A statement issued by the U.S. military’s Central Command before the alleged attack on the migrants’ center was reported said its “intense and sustained campaign” since March 15 has so far struck more than 800 targets and “killed hundreds of Houthi fighters and numerous Houthi leaders, including senior Houthi missile and UAV officials.”
President Donald Trump’s administration intensified the U.S. airstrike campaign against Iran-aligned Houthi forces in Yemen from March 15, expanding a campaign that began under former President Joe Biden in response to Houthi attacks on commercial and military shipping and strikes on Israel.
The Houthis began their attacks in October 2023, in response to the Israeli military campaign in Gaza launched after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack into southern Israel in which 1,200 people were killed and 253 abducted.
Central Command said its strikes “have degraded the pace and effectiveness of their attacks. Ballistic missile launches have dropped by 69%. Additionally, attacks from one way attack drones have decreased by 55%.”
“U.S. strikes destroyed the ability of Ras Isa Port to accept fuel which will begin to impact Houthi ability to not only conduct operations, but also to generate millions of dollars in revenue for their terror activities,” the statement read.
“Iran undoubtedly continues to provide support to the Houthis,” Central command continued. “The Houthis can only continue to attack our forces with the backing of the Iranian regime.”
“We will continue to ratchet up the pressure until the objective is met, which remains the restoration of freedom of navigation and American deterrence in the region,” the command said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(OTTAWA) — Just five months ago, a Conservative Party victory in Canada seemed all but certain.
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister and leader of the Liberal Party, was widely unpopular, and polls showed the Conservatives with what seemed like an insurmountable 25-point lead.
Then U.S. voters went to the polls. Donald Trump’s victory started to reverberate in Canada.
He imposed tariffs, including a 25% levy on Canadian goods; claimed fentanyl from China was pouring into the U.S. from the northern border; and threatened Canadian sovereignty, saying Canada should be made the 51st state as well as referring to Trudeau as “Governor Trudeau.”
Many Canadians became angry. Visits to the U.S. began falling and some boycotted American products. Then, Trudeau resigned in March, and the Liberals elected Mark Carney as their new leader.
The 25-point lead the Conservatives once had has been eviscerated, and support for the Liberals has grown.
Now, with an election set for Monday, April 28, pollsters are saying the Conservatives have lost too much ground to make up. Polls are predicting a loss for the Conservatives and leader Pierre Poilievre.
Canada has a parliamentary system. Hence, if Liberals win a majority of seats in the election, or are able to form a minority government with members of another party, Carney becomes Prime Minister.
Political experts and Canadians said that Trump undoubtedly changed the course of the election.
“There is no rebound for the Liberal Party if Donald Trump doesn’t intervene in the way that he does,” Tari Ajadi, an assistant professor in the department of political science at McGill University in Montreal, told ABC News.
“If Donald Trump hadn’t won a second term, I don’t think there would be any hope for the Liberals, regardless of whether or not they changed leader at this point,” he said. “But once Trump did win that second term, and once Trump did try to infringe upon Canadian sovereignty, it changed the entire race.”
Trump fractures U.S.-Canada alliance
At the beginning of 2025, the Liberal Party was facing a crisis. Trudeau, who had been prime minister since November 2015, had initially been “extremely popular,” according to Adam Chapnick, a professor of defense studies at Canadian Forces College in Toronto.
However, he was plagued by unpopularity in later years due to an escalated cost-of-living crisis in Canada, and minor scandals. Several of his cabinet ministers resigned in 2024 amid lack of confidence in his leadership.
Trudeau was required by Canadian law to call an election by October 2025, and his party seemed sure to lose.
Frank Graves, a Canadian pollster and founder of Ekos Research Associates, told ABC News that in January 2025, things did not look good for the Liberal Party.
“The Liberals reached a modern low of 19-point support. That’s very little for the Liberal Party,” he said. “In fact, [that] was a record for the 20th century. At the same time, the Conservative Party was running at 44 points, with a massive 25-point lead, which would have been a sure majority.”
He went on, “It looks like the Conservatives are in a position to just sip beer and cruise to the finish line and get their majority.”
As early as December, just weeks after Trump won his second term, Trump made comments that Canada should become the 51st state and referred to Trudeau as “Governor Trudeau.”
Although initially brushed off by Canadian officials, Trump continued to float 51st state rhetoric and began threats of imposing tariffs on Canada in January.
Trump also began arguing that the border drawn between the U.S. and Canada is just arbitrary.
Ajadi said that although Trudeau decided to resign as prime minister and Liberal Party leader, it still looked like the Liberals would lose no matter who emerged as the next leader — but that’s when Trump’s comments kicked into high gear.
“It still looked like the Liberals were dead in the water, regardless of who would come in as prime minister,” he said. “But when Donald Trump really started amping up this 51st state rhetoric, when he threatened the tariffs and eventually implemented the tariffs … it completely shifted the way that the polls were going.”
Carney gains support
In early March, Canada’s Liberal Party announced Mark Carney was chosen to succeed Trudeau after party members voted in a nominating contest between four candidates.
Carney, who was governor of the Bank of Canada, is credited with helping to guide the country through the worst of the 2008 financial crisis and, as former governor of the Bank of England, helping guide the U.K. through Brexit.
Ajadi said that Carney has come across to voters as “incredibly capable and well-educated” and as someone who can navigate challenges posed by Trump’s rhetoric.
“He can say, ‘Look at my resume. I’ve been able to help countries navigate and I’ve been able to negotiate things for two different G7 countries,'” Ajadi said. “Like, ‘I have this wealth of experience and, no, I’m not a politician, but I am someone who has been able to navigate really contentious political conversations.'”
This had led to a net-22 positive rating for Carney in the polls, according to Graves.
Poilievre loses support
While Carney and the Liberals have seen increasing support, Poilievre and the Conservatives have seen decreasing support.
Although opposition leaders have tried to paint Poilievre as being equivalent to Trump, political experts told ABC News he has many policies that differ from Trump.
However, some of Poilievre’s rhetoric has been viewed by Canadians as Trump-esque, such as his embrace of populist sentiments and calling opponents by nicknames, experts have said.
Additionally, Graves said Poilievre struggled to pivot his campaign from a series of mantras about how “Canada is broken” to addressing threats from the Trump administration.
“It’s hard to abandon a strategy which had propelled you to such a comfortable position in the polls overnight, which is almost what was required,” Graves said.
Throughout February, the Conservatives’ lead in the polls began to evaporate, according to Graves. He said by the end of February, Liberals achieved a solid lead, which has since extended since Carney became prime minister.
Graves added that taking on the U.S. is the biggest issue now to Canadians, more than the cost of living. When poll participants were asked who they have the most confidence in, Carney had a significant advantage.
“Because the [Conservatives were] still focused on the government, there was an opportunity for the Liberal leadership to take control of the narrative on how to respond to the president, and Mr. Carney did so,” Chapnick said. “And as Mr. Carney became associated with the leader who was going to stop Canada from becoming the 51st state, Liberal support skyrocketed.”
Canadians are put off by Trump’s actions
Political experts said they’ve noticed the anger Canadians have toward the U.S. in the wake of Trump’s rhetoric.
“Canadians are trying not to travel to the United States,” Chapnick said. “They’re trying not to buy American products. This idea that we can no longer rely on the United States has led to some pretty significant changes.”
Airlines and state tourism boards said they’ve seen travel from Canada to the U.S. drop in February and March.
Canadian citizen Garry Liboiron told ABC News he views Poilievre as a “mini Trump,” which will “definitely play against him.”
Garry Liboiron and his wife, Liz Liboiron, said that “the name-calling and all the childish rhetoric” has led them to sell their summer home in San Tan Valley, Arizona, a place they typically retreat to when their hometown of Coburg — which is an hour east of Toronto — is pummeled with snow in the winter months.
“It’s pretty sad because we’re not forced to leave, but we almost feel like we’re being pushed with the rhetoric that’s coming out of Washington these days toward Canadians and Canada,” Liz Liboiron told ABC News.
The two are on their “farewell tour” of the U.S., traveling to their favorite places for the last time, with no real indication they will ever return due to the “present circumstances” of the Trump administration.
“Liz and I don’t understand how this is allowed to go on and the things that are happening just seem to get more and more scary as each day goes on. So, we said, ‘Let’s sell now,'” Garry Liboiron said.
Garry Liboiron said he thinks the Canadian election will result in a Liberal majority win. He has noticed Carney’s popularity “[shoot] up like a rocket.”
Canadian Cam Hayden, who has traveled to 45 of the 50 states and is a frequent visitor of the U.S., also decided to boycott the nation shortly after the presidential election.
When Trump made claims of annexing Canada, it was a moment Hayden calls “the breaking point.”
“I said, ‘Forget it, I’m never going back until there’s a change in the administration and a change in attitude,'” Hayden told ABC News.
Hayden, the owner of the Edmonton Music Festival, used to travel to the U.S. to see different performers. He made many friends in America over the years, but said he cannot support the country with the current administration in place.
“I keep in touch with my friends [in the U.S.], and we’re still good friends. It’s just that I cannot see myself supporting an administration that has made the comment that they would like to annex the country I live in,” Hayden said.
ABC News’ Victoria Beaule, Bill Hutchinson, Ivan Pereira and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump said Sunday he wants a deal to end the Russia-Ukraine war in “two weeks or less,” but later said a little more time might be acceptable.
Trump’s deadline comes a day after he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Vatican City while they were in Rome for Pope Francis’ funeral.
“I think the meeting went well, we’ll see what happens over the next few days. We’ll probably learn a lot,” Trump told reporters on the tarmac at Morristown Municipal Airport in New Jersey before returning to Washington.
Trump said he was “very disappointed” that Russia continued to carry out missile and drone strikes in Ukraine days after he had implored Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the attacks while negotiations continued.
When asked what he and Zelenskyy talked about, Trump said Zelenskyy emphasized their need for more weapons.
“He told me that he needs more weapons and we’re going to see what happens — I want to see what, with respect to Russia — with Russia I’ve been surprised and disappointed when they did the bombing,” Trump said.
When asked what he wants from Putin, Trump replied, “I want him to stop shooting, sit down and sign a deal. We have the confines of a deal I believe and I want him to sign it and be done with it and just go back to life.”
Trump also said that Ukraine reclaiming its territory in Crimea that Russia occupied in 2014 would be complicated while blaming former President Barack Obama for allowing Russia to take the region. Asked whether he thought Ukraine would give up Crimea, Trump said “I think so.”
Earlier Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Russia and Ukraine are closer to a deal after Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy, but a deal is still not there.
He said the U.S. will now need to weigh if it’s time for the U.S. to step in to mediate talks.
“Well, I think they’re closer in general than they’ve been any time in the last three years, but it’s still not there,” Rubio told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“We cannot continue, as I said, to dedicate time and resources to this effort if it’s not going to come to fruition. So the last week has really been about figuring out how close are these sides really and are they close enough that this merits a continued investment of our time as a mediator in this regard.”
Trump and Zelenskyy met in Vatican City on Saturday while both were in Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis. White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said the two had a “very productive session.” Zelenskyy described the meeting as “good” in a post on X and said, “Hoping for results on everything we covered. Protecting lives of our people. Full and unconditional ceasefire. Reliable and lasting peace that will prevent another war from breaking out. Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results.”
After their meeting, Trump blasted Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s continued bombardments of Ukrainian cities, which continued overnight into Sunday morning with more drone attacks on six Ukrainian regions. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces downed eight Ukrainian drones overnight into Sunday morning.
Rubio was asked why the U.S. trusts that Putin won’t invade Ukraine again or another European country as he has never acknowledged Ukraine’s right to exist.
“Well, I don’t think peace deals are built on trust. I think peace deals have to be built on verification. Have to be built on facts, have to be built on action, have to be built on realities,” Rubio said. “So this is not an issue of, well, of trust. It’s an issue of building in these sorts of things, verification, security, guarantees, things that have been discussed in the past,” Rubio said.
Rubio said the U.S. has made “real progess, but those last couple steps of this journey were always going to be the hardest ones, and it needs to happen soon.”
Rubio wouldn’t elaborate on a timeline of a deal but instead stressed this is a “critical week” for the U.S.
“This week is going to be a really important week in which we have to make a determination about whether this is an endeavor that we want to continue to be involved in, or if it’s time to sort of focus on some other issues that are equally, if not more important, in some cases, but we want to see it happen, there are reasons to be optimistic, but there are reasons to be realistic, of course, as well,” he said. “We’re close, but we’re not close enough.”
Asked if he supported negotiations, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told CNN’s “State of the Union that he fears Trump will cave in to Putin and “sell out” Zelenskyy.
“Well, look, my great fear, Dana, is that Trump will just cave in to Putin,” Schumer told CNN’s Dana Bash. “That’s been the overall indications all along. And, of course, the bottom line is very simple, that if we cave to Putin, if Trump caves in to Putin, it’s three — it’s bad in three very bad ways:” abandoning Ukraine would be a “moral tragedy, he said, and would “tear asunder” alliances with European allies.
“But, third, and maybe worst of all, it’s a sign that the United States is weak. It sends a signal to every dictator in China, in North Korea, in Iran that, if you stand up and bully Trump, you’re going to get your way,” he said.
National Security Adviser Mike Waltz told Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” that more sanctions against Russia could be coming as the U.S. tries to force it to make a deal.
“[Trump] talked about potential action on banking, potential action on the oil and gas sector. But he’s determined to use both carrots and sticks to get both sides to the table,” he said.
Smoke rises after a massive explosion that ripped through the Shahid Rajaee Port as officials conduct operations on April 26, 2025. More than 500 people have so far been injured in a massive explosion (Photo by Iranian Red Crescent/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — Hundreds of people were injured following an explosion at one of Iran’s most important ports, according to officials.
The explosion originated in a container at the Shahid Rajaee port in Bandar Abbas, according to state media outlet Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting.
At least 516 people were injured in the explosion and subsequent fire, according to state outlet the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), which cited a spokesperson for Iran’s emergency services.
Video posted to social media shows damaged buildings filled with smoke.
Emergency services rushed to the scene following the explosion. The port plays a key role in trade in the country and is responsible for the vast majority of loading and unloading of goods in Iranian ports.
The cause of the explosion is under investigation, said Mehrdad Hassanzadeh, a crisis management official in the area.
It is unclear whether there were fatalities as a result of the explosion.
People gather along the road as the coffin of Pope Francis is transported from Saint Peter’s Basilica to Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, after the pontiff’s funeral ceremony in St. Peter’s Square, at The Vatican (Marco Ravagli/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
(ROME) — Pope Francis was laid to rest Saturday at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome after dying at 88 years old on April 21.
More than 250,000 people turned out to bid farewell to the 266th pope of the Roman Catholic Church. The crowd at St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican included many young people and world leaders, giving us some important snapshots of our political moment.
Here are some key moments from the historic event:
Francis remembered as ‘pope among the people’
At his funeral, Pope Francis was remembered and venerated as a pontiff with “strength and serenity” who modeled his pontificate on St. Francis of Assisi. The dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, delivered the homily in front of mourners in St. Peter’s Square.
“He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalized, the least among us,” Re said.
“He was a Pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone. He was also a Pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.”
Young people play a prominent role in Pope Francis’ funeral
Pope Francis’ outreach resonated with the younger generations, thousands of whom were present in St. Peter’s Square to mourn the late pontiff during his funeral on Saturday morning.
About 80,000 teenagers had registered for the Jubilee of Teenagers, a special event for worshippers between the ages of 12 and 17 during the Catholic Church’s Jubilee year of 2025, according to the Dicastery for Evangelization, a department of the Roman Curia — the central governing body of the Catholic Church.
Some changes were made to the event, scheduled for Friday and Sunday, due to Francis’ death. The canonization of Carlo Acutis, who died in 2006 at the age of 15 from leukemia, was postponed. Acutis, an Italian teen known for his devotion to the Eucharist, is set to become the first “millennial” saint upon his canonization, which was formally approved by Francis in July 2024.
Crowd applauds as Pope Francis’ coffin is brought out of basilica
The mourners assembled in St. Peter’s Square broke into applause as pallbearers carried the pope’s coffin outside. It was the site of Pope Francis’ last official act, when he celebrated Easter Sunday a day before he died on April 21.
American reporter delivers 1st reading
Some young adults even played a prominent role in the funeral proceedings. American Kielce Gussie, 28, did the first reading in English — several verses from the Acts of the Apostles.
Gussie works as a journalist at Vatican News and completed her undergraduate degree in theology at Mount St. Mary’s University. She also has a licentiate degree in church communication from Rome’s Pontifical University of the Holy Cross.
Crowd applauds Ukrainian President Zelenskyy
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in attendance with his wife Olena Zelenska, earned applause from the crowd in St. Peter’s Square appeared on the screens around the area.
Zelenskyy has led Ukraine during the country’s war with Russia, which escalated in 2022 after the Russian invasion of the Eastern European country.
President Donald Trump met privately with Zelenskyy prior to the funeral and had a “very productive session,” White House Communications Director Steven Cheung told the press pool traveling with Trump.
It was the first meeting between the two men since their contentious February meeting in the Oval Office, in which Trump and Vice President JD Vance rebuked Zelenskyy for his handling of the war.
First lady Melania Trump joined the president at the funeral. Former President Joe Biden and former first lady Jill Biden attended the funeral as well, sitting about four rows behind the Trumps.
Pages of the Book of Gospels blow in the wind
It is one of the most poignant and iconic moments in papal funerals: the simple yet profound image of the breeze blowing the pages of the Book of the Gospels resting on top of the pope’s coffin in St. Peter’s Square.
The book was opened to the reading, “In the Passion and death of the Lord.”
Bells toll as coffin is brought back into basilica
The coffin carrying Pope Francis was brought through the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica for a final time as bells tolled for the pope throughout the Vatican.
The funeral, which lasted more than two hours, concluded with bells ringing for the pontiff. His coffin was taken to Rome’s Basilica of Saint Mary Major where he was laid to rest.
Thousands line streets of Rome for Pope Francis’ funeral procession
The four-mile route between St. Peter’s Basilica and the final resting place of Pope Francis — the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome — was lined with tens of thousands of mourners following his funeral on Saturday morning.
People could be seen crying and applauding as Francis’ coffin drove by.
Francis’ coffin was placed in the bed of a white pickup truck, where it was visible to the thousands lining the streets. The procession took the pope’s body past some of Rome’s historical landmarks, such as the Roman Forum and the Colosseum.
When Pope Francis arrived at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, it was the last time he was seen in public before his burial. The basilica will reopen to visitors again on Sunday.
ABC News’ Alexandra Hutzler, Kevin Shalvey, Jon Haworth, Hannah Demissie, Molly Nagle, Alex Ederson, Phoebe Natanson and Thomas Dunlavey.
(ROME) — At his funeral, Pope Francis was remembered and venerated as a pontiff with “strength and serenity” who modeled his pontificate on St. Francis of Assisi. The dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, delivered the homily in front of some 200,000 mourners in St. Peter’s Square.
Here are the remarks translated into English:
In this majestic Saint Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past twelve years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains.
Yet, we are sustained by the certainty of faith, which assures us that human existence does not end in the tomb, but in the Father’s house, in a life of happiness that will know no end.
On behalf of the College of Cardinals, I cordially thank all of you for your presence. With deep emotion, I extend respectful greetings and heartfelt thanks to the Heads of State, Heads of Government and Official Delegations who have come from many countries to express their affection, veneration and esteem for our late Holy Father.
The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.
The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is that of last Sunday, Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious health problems, wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of Saint Peter’s Basilica. He then came down to this Square to greet the large crowd gathered for the Easter Mass while riding in the open-top Popemobile.
With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved Pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love.
We are enlightened and guided by the passage of the Gospel, in which the very voice of Christ resounded, asking the first of the Apostles: “Peter, do you love me more than these?” Peter’s answer was prompt and sincere: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!” Jesus then entrusted him with the great mission: “Feed my sheep.”
This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our Master and Lord, who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).
Despite his frailty and suffering towards the end, Pope Francis chose to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life. He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd, who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them.
And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God, mindful of the words of Jesus quoted by the Apostle Paul: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
When Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the Conclave on 13 March 2013 to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, he already had many years of experience in religious life in the Society of Jesus and, above all, was enriched by twenty-one years of pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, first as Auxiliary, then as Coadjutor and, above all, as Archbishop.
The decision to take the name Francis immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi.He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church. He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalized, the least among us.
He was a Pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone. He was also a Pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.
With his characteristic vocabulary and language, rich in images and metaphors, he always sought to shed light on the problems of our time with the wisdom of the Gospel. He did so by offering a response guided by the light of faith and encouraging us to live as Christians amid the challenges and contradictions in recent years, which he loved to describe as an “epochal change.”
He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church.
Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of this time of globalization. He gave of himself by comforting and encouraging us with a message capable of reaching people’s hearts in a direct and immediate way.
His charisma of welcome and listening, combined with a manner of behavior in keeping with today’s sensitivities, touched hearts and sought to reawaken moral and spiritual sensibilities.
Evangelization was the guiding principle of his pontificate. With a clear missionary vision, he spread the joy of the Gospel, which was the title of his first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium. It is a joy that fills the hearts of all those who entrust themselves to God with confidence and hope.
The guiding thread of his mission was also the conviction that the Church is a home for all, a home with its doors always open. He often used the image of the Church as a “field hospital” after a battle in which many were wounded; a Church determined to take care of the problems of people and the great anxieties that tear the contemporary world apart; a Church capable of bending down to every person, regardless of their beliefs or condition, and healing their wounds.
His gestures and exhortations in favor of refugees and displaced persons are countless. His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant.
It is significant that Pope Francis’ first journey was to Lampedusa, an island that symbolizes the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea. In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico.
Of his 47 arduous Apostolic Journeys, the one to Iraq in 2021, defying every risk, will remain particularly memorable. That difficult Apostolic Journey was a balm on the open wounds of the Iraqi people, who had suffered so much from the inhuman actions of ISIS. It was also an important trip for interreligious dialogue, another significant dimension of his pastoral work.
With his 2024 Apostolic Journey to four countries in Asia-Oceania, the Pope reached “the most peripheral periphery of the world.”
Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the centre, repeatedly emphasizing that God never tires of forgiving us. He always forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path.
He called for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in order to highlight that mercy is “the heart of the Gospel.”
Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.
In contrast to what he called “the culture of waste,” he spoke of the culture of encounter and solidarity. The theme of fraternity ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones.
In his Encyclical Letter Fratelli tutti, he wanted to revive a worldwide aspiration to fraternity, because we are all children of the same Father who is in heaven. He often forcefully reminded us that we all belong to the same human family.
In 2019, during his trip to the United Arab Emirates, Pope Francis signed A Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, recalling the common fatherhood of God.
Addressing men and women throughout the world, in his Encyclical Letter Laudato si’ he drew attention to our duties and shared responsibility for our common home, stating, “No one is saved alone.”
Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions. War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone. “Build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation he repeated many times, and his service of faith as Successor of the Apostle Peter always was linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions.
Spiritually united with all of Christianity, we are here in large numbers to pray for Pope Francis, that God may welcome him into the immensity of his love. Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying, “Do not forget to pray for me.”
Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us. May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this Basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.
(ROME) — At his funeral, Pope Francis was remembered and venerated as a pontiff with “strength and serenity” who modeled his pontificate on St. Francis of Assisi. The dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, delivered the homily in front of some 200,000 mourners in St. Peter’s Square.
Here are the remarks translated into English:
In this majestic Saint Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past twelve years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains.
Yet, we are sustained by the certainty of faith, which assures us that human existence does not end in the tomb, but in the Father’s house, in a life of happiness that will know no end.
On behalf of the College of Cardinals, I cordially thank all of you for your presence. With deep emotion, I extend respectful greetings and heartfelt thanks to the Heads of State, Heads of Government and Official Delegations who have come from many countries to express their affection, veneration and esteem for our late Holy Father.
The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.
The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is that of last Sunday, Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious health problems, wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of Saint Peter’s Basilica. He then came down to this Square to greet the large crowd gathered for the Easter Mass while riding in the open-top Popemobile.
With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved Pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love.
We are enlightened and guided by the passage of the Gospel, in which the very voice of Christ resounded, asking the first of the Apostles: “Peter, do you love me more than these?” Peter’s answer was prompt and sincere: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!” Jesus then entrusted him with the great mission: “Feed my sheep.”
This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our Master and Lord, who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).
Despite his frailty and suffering towards the end, Pope Francis chose to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life. He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd, who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them.
And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God, mindful of the words of Jesus quoted by the Apostle Paul: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
When Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the Conclave on 13 March 2013 to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, he already had many years of experience in religious life in the Society of Jesus and, above all, was enriched by twenty-one years of pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, first as Auxiliary, then as Coadjutor and, above all, as Archbishop.
The decision to take the name Francis immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi.He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church. He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalized, the least among us.
He was a Pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone. He was also a Pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.
With his characteristic vocabulary and language, rich in images and metaphors, he always sought to shed light on the problems of our time with the wisdom of the Gospel. He did so by offering a response guided by the light of faith and encouraging us to live as Christians amid the challenges and contradictions in recent years, which he loved to describe as an “epochal change.”
He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church.
Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of this time of globalization. He gave of himself by comforting and encouraging us with a message capable of reaching people’s hearts in a direct and immediate way.
His charisma of welcome and listening, combined with a manner of behavior in keeping with today’s sensitivities, touched hearts and sought to reawaken moral and spiritual sensibilities.
Evangelization was the guiding principle of his pontificate. With a clear missionary vision, he spread the joy of the Gospel, which was the title of his first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium. It is a joy that fills the hearts of all those who entrust themselves to God with confidence and hope.
The guiding thread of his mission was also the conviction that the Church is a home for all, a home with its doors always open. He often used the image of the Church as a “field hospital” after a battle in which many were wounded; a Church determined to take care of the problems of people and the great anxieties that tear the contemporary world apart; a Church capable of bending down to every person, regardless of their beliefs or condition, and healing their wounds.
His gestures and exhortations in favor of refugees and displaced persons are countless. His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant.
It is significant that Pope Francis’ first journey was to Lampedusa, an island that symbolizes the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea. In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico.
Of his 47 arduous Apostolic Journeys, the one to Iraq in 2021, defying every risk, will remain particularly memorable. That difficult Apostolic Journey was a balm on the open wounds of the Iraqi people, who had suffered so much from the inhuman actions of ISIS. It was also an important trip for interreligious dialogue, another significant dimension of his pastoral work.
With his 2024 Apostolic Journey to four countries in Asia-Oceania, the Pope reached “the most peripheral periphery of the world.”
Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the centre, repeatedly emphasizing that God never tires of forgiving us. He always forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path.
He called for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in order to highlight that mercy is “the heart of the Gospel.”
Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.
In contrast to what he called “the culture of waste,” he spoke of the culture of encounter and solidarity. The theme of fraternity ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones.
In his Encyclical Letter Fratelli tutti, he wanted to revive a worldwide aspiration to fraternity, because we are all children of the same Father who is in heaven. He often forcefully reminded us that we all belong to the same human family.
In 2019, during his trip to the United Arab Emirates, Pope Francis signed A Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, recalling the common fatherhood of God.
Addressing men and women throughout the world, in his Encyclical Letter Laudato si’ he drew attention to our duties and shared responsibility for our common home, stating, “No one is saved alone.”
Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions. War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone. “Build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation he repeated many times, and his service of faith as Successor of the Apostle Peter always was linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions.
Spiritually united with all of Christianity, we are here in large numbers to pray for Pope Francis, that God may welcome him into the immensity of his love. Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying, “Do not forget to pray for me.”
Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us. May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this Basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.
American Kielce Gussie, who works as a journalist at Vatican News, did the first reading in English — several verses from the Acts of the Apostles — at the funeral of Pope Francis. Image via ABC News.
(ROME) — American Kielce Gussie, who works as a journalist at Vatican News, did the first reading in English — several verses from the Acts of the Apostles — at the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday.
Gussie, originally from Florida, completed her undergraduate degree in theology at Mount St. Mary’s University.
The university featured her in an article in March 2019, saying that she planned on incorporating her faith with media.
“While in Rome, Gussie will pursue an internship with either EWTN or Catholic Bytes,” Mount St. Mary’s University said in 2019. “After completing her Licentiate, she hopes to continue working in Rome with a Catholic media company. Her goal is to incorporate her Catholic faith with media directed toward youth evangelization. Assistant Professor of Communication Mary Catherine Kennedy, Ph.D., is confident that Gussie will succeed. ‘Kielce is a go-getter. She came to the Mount with an idea of what she wanted to pursue after graduation,’ Kennedy said. She has paired her communication classes with her theology classes to pursue work in the Church. Her ambition and desire to serve others is spectacular, and I expect her to do well in her graduate studies in Rome.'”
American Kielce Gussie, who works as a journalist at Vatican News, did the first reading in English — several verses from the Acts of the Apostles — at the funeral of Pope Francis. Image via ABC News.
(ROME) — American Kielce Gussie, who works as a journalist at Vatican News, did the first reading in English — several verses from the Acts of the Apostles — at the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday.
Gussie, originally from Florida, completed her undergraduate degree in theology at Mount St. Mary’s University.
The university featured her in an article in March 2019, saying that she planned on incorporating her faith with media.
“While in Rome, Gussie will pursue an internship with either EWTN or Catholic Bytes,” Mount St. Mary’s University said in 2019. “After completing her Licentiate, she hopes to continue working in Rome with a Catholic media company. Her goal is to incorporate her Catholic faith with media directed toward youth evangelization. Assistant Professor of Communication Mary Catherine Kennedy, Ph.D., is confident that Gussie will succeed. ‘Kielce is a go-getter. She came to the Mount with an idea of what she wanted to pursue after graduation,’ Kennedy said. She has paired her communication classes with her theology classes to pursue work in the Church. Her ambition and desire to serve others is spectacular, and I expect her to do well in her graduate studies in Rome.'”
