https://www.scmp.com/rss/325338/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji A report from Canada’s spy agency that identifies Khalistani extremism as a national security threat may accelerate a diplomatic reset with India, even as analysts say allegations of interference by New Delhi continue to cloud the relationship. Delhi has long complained that a small number of Sikh separatist extremists have used Canadian soil to organise, raise funds and support violence connected to the push for “Khalistan”, a proposed independent Sikh state in India’s Punjab. The report by the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3353121/canada-labels-sikh-extremism-threat-while-accusing-india-meddling?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3353121/canada-labels-sikh-extremism-threat-while-accusing-india-meddling?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 09:00:05 +0000 Reuters Reuters US Secretary of State Marco Rubio left the Vatican on Thursday after seeing Pope Leo in what was expected to have been a fraught meeting following President Donald Trump’s repeated attacks on the Catholic leader over the Iran war. Rubio spent 2-1/2 hours at the Vatican before driving away in a convoy under tight security. He met initially Leo before ‌sitting down with senior Vatican officials, including top diplomat Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin. “The meeting underscored the strong... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352797/rubio-meets-pope-leo-vatican-defuse-tensions-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352797/rubio-meets-pope-leo-vatican-defuse-tensions-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 12:30:15 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pope Leo will inaugurate the soaring central tower of Barcelona’s famed Sagrada Familia basilica when he visits Spain next month in a week-long trip that will also take him to a migrant reception centre in the Canary Islands, the Vatican said on Wednesday. The June 6-12 visit will first bring Leo to Madrid for meetings with the government, parliament and King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. He will also preside over a prayer vigil with young people that will recall the last time a pope visited... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352659/pope-inaugurate-barcelonas-sagrada-familia-june-trip-spain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352659/pope-inaugurate-barcelonas-sagrada-familia-june-trip-spain?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 14:09:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump has renewed his criticism of Pope Leo, potentially complicating a fence-mending visit that Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to make to the Vatican on Thursday. In an interview with conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, Trump said the first American-born pontiff was helping Iran and also making the world less safe with his comments about the importance of not treating immigrants with disrespect. “The pope would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to have... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352541/trump-renews-attacks-pope-leo-just-days-rubios-vatican-trip?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352541/trump-renews-attacks-pope-leo-just-days-rubios-vatican-trip?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 18:55:14 +0000 Annemarie Evans Annemarie Evans I WAS BORN in Worcester (in England’s West Midlands) in 1961. Dad was a priest there. On the morning I was born, the postman brought a letter containing a job offer for dad as the principal of a mission school in India. So, when I was six months old, the family headed off to India. India was a big part of my parents’ lives. My mother was born there; dad went out as a missionary. They’d met in India. I HAVE TWO older sisters and a younger brother, so my brother was born in India. We were... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/passions/article/3351866/meet-reverend-will-newman-chaplain-hong-kongs-st-johns-cathedral-and-stanley-prison?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/passions/article/3351866/meet-reverend-will-newman-chaplain-hong-kongs-st-johns-cathedral-and-stanley-prison?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:10 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Hindu nationalist party on Monday wrested control of the state of West Bengal, an opposition stronghold, in a key election. The Election Commission of India released partial results showing the Bharatiya Janata Party won at least 124 seats in the 294-member West Bengal assembly, and was leading in 83 others. Final results are expected on Monday evening. It would be a significant breakthrough for Modi’s party, which had tried for years to dislodge the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3352407/india-pm-modis-party-takes-control-west-bengal-key-state-election?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3352407/india-pm-modis-party-takes-control-west-bengal-key-state-election?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 15:22:27 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet Pope Leo on a trip to Rome this week, in the wake of the pontiff’s clash with US President Donald Trump, a Vatican source said on Sunday. The source confirmed Italian media reports about the meeting, which newspapers said would take place on Thursday in an attempt to “thaw” relations. It comes just weeks after Trump’s extraordinary criticism of Pope Leo over the Catholic leader’s anti-war rhetoric. The private visit with the top US diplomat, who is a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352292/rubio-visit-rome-meet-pope-leo-after-trump-row-attempt-thaw-relations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352292/rubio-visit-rome-meet-pope-leo-after-trump-row-attempt-thaw-relations?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 18:14:18 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A state-backed Nigerian militia, operating alongside the military, killed scores of ethnic Fulani herders in a raid, local sources have told journalists. The herders were killed in an operation that also involved vigilantes from Benin, just across the border from Niger State, after the herders were accused of being informants for the jihadist group Ansaru. The Nigerian vigilantes from Bussa district raided herding Fulani settlements around Kabe, in neighbouring Borgu, in a massacre that also saw... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3352287/vigilantes-nigeria-kill-herders-amid-jihadist-tensions-kidnapping-gangs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3352287/vigilantes-nigeria-kill-herders-amid-jihadist-tensions-kidnapping-gangs?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 13:06:51 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The UK government said on Thursday that the country was facing an antisemitism emergency and pledged to increase security for Jewish communities after a string of arson attacks and a double stabbing that have sparked fear and anger among Jews. The country’s official terror threat level was raised from substantial to severe after Wednesday’s stabbing attack in London, which police have called an act of terrorism with potential links to Iran. Severe is the second-highest rung on a five-point scale... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352030/uk-tackle-antisemitism-emergency-police-probe-double-stabbing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352030/uk-tackle-antisemitism-emergency-police-probe-double-stabbing?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 09:49:05 +0000 Alice Yan Alice Yan A senior monk in China has attracted widespread social media attention for enthusiastically playing electronic games. Venerable Huayan, from Mingjiao Temple in Hefei in central Anhui province, has been a Buddhist monk for 20 years. He began to play e-games when he was a primary school pupil in the early 2000s, Counter-Strike (CS) is his favourite, according to the news portal Sina.com. Huayan once achieved the Legendary Eagle Master position, a very high ranking in CS. He said the most... https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/china-personalities/article/3351166/video-game-loving-china-monk-defends-hobby-says-gaming-religion-serve-similar-life-purposes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/china-personalities/article/3351166/video-game-loving-china-monk-defends-hobby-says-gaming-religion-serve-similar-life-purposes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 01:00:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press London police say the stabbing of two Jewish men on Wednesday has been declared a terrorist incident. Metropolitan Police say they are investigating whether the attack specifically targeted the Jewish community. The force says the incident, in the Golders Green area, left two men, aged 34 and 76, hospitalised with knife wounds. A 45-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. Police are investigating whether the stabbings are linked to recent arson attacks on synagogues and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351899/uk-police-say-london-stabbing-2-jewish-men-terrorist-incident?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351899/uk-police-say-london-stabbing-2-jewish-men-terrorist-incident?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 14:54:48 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Plans to build a mosque in Fujisawa, a city southwest of Tokyo, have become the latest flashpoint for Muslim communities in Japan, as a growing need for places of worship meets resistance from some local residents. Muslim community leaders and scholars say the opposition in Fujisawa reflects a broader pattern in Japan, where resistance to mosques has increasingly been shaped by negative overseas coverage of Islam and claims spread on social media. A public meeting in February called to allow... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351746/resistance-new-mosques-exposes-tensions-over-japans-growing-muslim-communities?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351746/resistance-new-mosques-exposes-tensions-over-japans-growing-muslim-communities?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 02:31:06 +0000 Reuters Reuters Pope Leo and new Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally met for the first time on Monday, in a symbolic encounter at the Vatican in which the leaders of the long-separated Catholic Church and Church of England exchanged gifts and prayed together. Mullally, the first woman to serve as spiritual leader of the world’s 85 million Anglicans, was ‌welcomed by Leo, the first US leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, into his formal office at the Vatican’s ornate apostolic palace. The two, who... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351618/pope-meets-first-female-archbishop-canterbury-symbolic-vatican-encounter?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351618/pope-meets-first-female-archbishop-canterbury-symbolic-vatican-encounter?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 17:36:06 +0000 dpa dpa Pope Leo has called for the worldwide abolition of the death penalty on Saturday, a day after the US administration mulled expanding the penalty. “The dignity of the person is not lost even after very serious crimes are committed,” Leo said in a video message marking the 15th anniversary of the abolition of the death penalty in his home state of Illinois. “The Catholic Church has consistently taught that each human life, from the moment of conception until natural death, is sacred and deserves... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351441/pope-leo-urges-worldwide-abolition-death-penalty?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351441/pope-leo-urges-worldwide-abolition-death-penalty?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:51:23 +0000 Aisyah Llewellyn Aisyah Llewellyn Indonesia’s blasphemy law has once again come under scrutiny after former vice-president Jusuf Kalla was reported to police over remarks linking past Muslim-Christian conflicts to beliefs about martyrdom. The case is unusual because it involves Christian complainants against one of the most senior Muslim figures in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation and reflects what critics have long called the law’s central flaw: its susceptibility to politicised use. Kalla, a career politician... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351325/indonesias-blasphemy-law-religious-protection-or-political-purpose?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351325/indonesias-blasphemy-law-religious-protection-or-political-purpose?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:54:11 +0000 Alcott Wei,Xinlu Liang Alcott Wei,Xinlu Liang A senior Chinese official who oversees religious and ethnic minority affairs has called for China to “strengthen” the education, training and management of Tibetan Buddhist personnel. Li Ganjie, head of the Communist Party’s United Front Work Department and a member of the now 22-man Politburo, made the call during a trip to Tibetan areas in western China, state news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday. He visited several religious organisations and study institutions in the Tibetan autonomous... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3351181/china-must-strengthen-education-tibetan-buddhists-beijing-official-says-after-tour?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3351181/china-must-strengthen-education-tibetan-buddhists-beijing-official-says-after-tour?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 12:00:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pope Leo on Tuesday used the fourth and final leg of his Africa tour in Equatorial Guinea to denounce the “colonisation” of Africa’s minerals and the “lust for power” in a country whose president has been in office since 1979. Adoring crowds in the largely Catholic country lined the road from the airport into the administrative capital, Malabo, cheering the first pope to visit since St John Paul II in 1982. Wearing his formal red mozzetta cape, Leo thrilled the flag-waving masses by arriving at... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350961/pope-leo-denounces-colonisation-minerals-final-leg-africa-tour?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350961/pope-leo-denounces-colonisation-minerals-final-leg-africa-tour?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 04:54:01 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump and many of his leading Christian supporters and top Republicans are taking part this week in a marathon reading of the Bible in an America 250-themed event billed as encouraging a “return to the spiritual foundation that has shaped our country”. The America Reads the Bible event – with each participant reading a passage aloud – is being live-streamed from the Museum of the Bible in Washington and other locations. It featured a video of Trump from the Oval Office on... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350934/trump-reads-bible-after-high-profile-clash-pope?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350934/trump-reads-bible-after-high-profile-clash-pope?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 23:48:35 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The Israeli military on Tuesday said two soldiers would receive 30 days of military detention and be removed from combat duty over the destruction of a statue of Jesus Christ in southern Lebanon. The decision comes after widespread condemnation of a photo shared online showing an Israeli soldier using a sledgehammer to strike the head of a statue of a crucified Jesus that had fallen off a cross. The sculpture was located in the Christian village of Debl in south Lebanon, near the border with... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3350928/israel-jails-soldiers-vandalising-jesus-statue-lebanon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3350928/israel-jails-soldiers-vandalising-jesus-statue-lebanon?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 18:01:08 +0000 Reuters Reuters Pope Leo lamented during an event in Angola on Monday that many people in the world were being “exploited by authoritarians and defrauded by the rich”, the latest example of a forceful new speaking style he has adopted on his ‌four-nation Africa tour. The first US pope, who has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump with his more outspoken comments, told worshippers at a Mass in Saurimo, near the Democratic Republic of Congo border, that violence and oppression went against the Christian... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350762/pope-leo-criticises-exploitation-worlds-authoritarians-during-angola-trip?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350762/pope-leo-criticises-exploitation-worlds-authoritarians-during-angola-trip?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Apr 2026 11:55:07 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pope Leo on Sunday recalled the “sorrow and great suffering” Angolans endured for centuries, as the American pope prayed at a Catholic shrine located at the site of an important hub of the African slave trade during Portugal’s colonial rule. Leo travelled to the Sanctuary of Mama Muxima, nestled in the Angolan savannahs of baobab trees at the edge of the Kwanza River. It became a major pilgrimage destination after believers reported an appearance by the Virgin Mary around 1833. But the Church of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350655/pope-leo-prays-catholic-shrine-angola-was-centre-african-slave-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350655/pope-leo-prays-catholic-shrine-angola-was-centre-african-slave-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 18:25:23 +0000 Reuters Reuters Pope Leo sought ⁠to downplay his feud ⁠with US President Donald Trump on Saturday, ⁠saying reporting about comments he has made so far during his Africa tour “has not been accurate in all its aspects”. Speaking to reporters in English aboard his flight to Angola for the third leg of his ambitious 10-day Africa tour, the first US pope said comments ‌he made two days earlier in Cameroon decrying that the world was being “ravaged by a handful of tyrants” were not aimed at Trump. That speech, said... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350604/pope-leo-seeks-defuse-tensions-trump-says-not-trying-debate-him?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350604/pope-leo-seeks-defuse-tensions-trump-says-not-trying-debate-him?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 03:32:39 +0000 Reuters Reuters Pope Leo called on Cameroonians on Friday to reject violence and be generous with their neighbours during an event billed as the biggest of his four-nation Africa tour, with roughly 120,000 people flocking to a mass he led in the port city of Douala. Amid heavy security, some believers had made their way on Thursday to the city’s Japoma ‌Stadium, venue of the mass, and slept overnight outside on mats to hear Friday’s address from the pontiff, who has become outspoken on war and inequality and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350542/pope-urges-cameroon-reject-violence-mass-draws-120000-people?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350542/pope-urges-cameroon-reject-violence-mass-draws-120000-people?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Apr 2026 17:15:32 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is usually seen in carefully choreographed meetings with presidents, kings and regional leaders in Putrajaya. So it was striking to see him instead riding through the city on a casual live stream with Sneako, the controversial 27-year-old American streamer and Muslim convert whose appeal to mainly young male audiences has made him an unlikely cultural figure. For more than an hour on Friday, the live stream gave Anwar a rare chance to sell Malaysia, his... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3350501/malaysias-anwar-chats-us-muslim-streamer-it-populist-move?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3350501/malaysias-anwar-chats-us-muslim-streamer-it-populist-move?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Apr 2026 11:21:23 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump posted an image of Jesus embracing him on Wednesday, as a war of words between his administration and the pope showed little sign of abating. The image, reposted to Trump’s Truth Social account, shows Trump with his eyes closed, touching temple-to-temple with a similarly posed Jesus. Trump is standing behind a microphone, and behind him is an American flag. The original post ‌had a caption that included the words: “God might be playing his Trump card!” Trump’s repost... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350224/trump-posts-image-jesus-hugging-him-amid-row-pope-over-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350224/trump-posts-image-jesus-hugging-him-amid-row-pope-over-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Apr 2026 16:44:40 +0000 Reuters Reuters Pope Leo has said the world needs to hear a message of peace and coexistence, after US President Donald Trump attacked him for a second time this week on social media. Speaking on Wednesday during his flight from Algeria to Cameroon for the second leg of a whirlwind 10-day ‌Africa tour, the first US pontiff urged respect for all people and said his travels so far had shown the importance of pursuing dialogue between different communities. “Although we have different beliefs, we have different... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350217/pope-leo-stresses-message-peace-and-unity-despite-another-trump-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3350217/pope-leo-stresses-message-peace-and-unity-despite-another-trump-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Apr 2026 15:15:08 +0000 Gloria Tso Gloria Tso Yves Saint Laurent famously once said that fashion fades, but style is eternal. For designer Filippo Sorcinelli, who fashions garments for one of the world’s most revered religious figures, that statement carries even greater weight. Having dressed three popes – Benedict, Francis and now Leo – for some of their most notable appearances for the better part of two decades, Sorcinelli, 50, is now affectionately known as the pope’s tailor, his intricately embroidered liturgical vestments akin to the... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3349975/designer-filippo-sorcinelli-dressing-last-three-popes-interview?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3349975/designer-filippo-sorcinelli-dressing-last-three-popes-interview?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:00:09 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service US President Donald Trump on Monday defended his now deleted social media post that appeared to depict himself as Jesus Christ, contending that it was meant to portray him as “a doctor” after right-wing figures continued a recent trend of pushing back on the president’s recent comments. “Well, it wasn’t a depiction. It was me, I did post it. And I thought it was me as a doctor, and had to do with Red Cross,” Trump said during an impromptu event at the White House. “There was a Red Cross worker... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349972/trump-claims-jesus-meme-caused-outcry-was-him-doctor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349972/trump-claims-jesus-meme-caused-outcry-was-him-doctor?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 02:36:41 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump delivered an extraordinary broadside against Pope Leo on Sunday night, saying he did not think the US-born global leader of the 1.4-billion-member Catholic Church was “doing a very good job” and that “he’s a very liberal person”, while also suggesting the pontiff should “stop catering to the Radical Left”. Flying back to Washington from Florida, Trump used a lengthy social media post to sharply criticise Leo, then kept it up after disembarking, in comments on the tarmac... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349830/trump-attacks-pope-leo-calling-him-weak-crime-and-terrible-foreign-policy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349830/trump-attacks-pope-leo-calling-him-weak-crime-and-terrible-foreign-policy?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Apr 2026 02:02:15 +0000 Reuters Reuters At least 200 people were feared dead after Nigerian military jets struck a village market while pursuing Islamist militants in the northeast of the country ‌on Saturday night, a councillor for the area and residents said on Sunday. The Nigerian Air Force, responding to reports of civilian casualties, said in a statement it had activated its Civilian Harm Accident and Investigation Cell “to immediately proceed to the location on a fact-finding mission on the allegation”. Earlier, the Air Force... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3349822/200-feared-dead-after-nigerian-air-strike-hits-market-northeast-yobe-state?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3349822/200-feared-dead-after-nigerian-air-strike-hits-market-northeast-yobe-state?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Apr 2026 21:18:31 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg The Pentagon and the Vatican denied allegations of a rift following Pope Leo’s criticism of the Trump administration and a news report of a contentious meeting between a papal envoy and a top US defence official. In separate statements, the two sides both professed an eagerness to get along, saying the meeting that occurred in January was frank but polite. The Defence Department issued a statement that said “we have nothing but the highest regard and welcome continued dialogue with the Holy... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349613/pentagon-plays-down-rift-vatican-despite-pope-leos-criticism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349613/pentagon-plays-down-rift-vatican-despite-pope-leos-criticism?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 05:15:07 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pope Leo celebrated his first Easter Mass as pontiff with a call on Sunday to lay down arms and seek peace to global conflicts through dialogue, but he departed from a tradition of listing the world’s woes by name in the Urbi et Orbi blessing from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica. Leo, the first US-born pope, emphasised Easter’s message of hope as a celebration of Jesus’ resurrection after being crucified, in both the blessing and his homily. “Let us allow our hearts to be transformed by his... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3349090/pope-leo-calls-peace-dialogue-amid-ukraine-iran-wars-easter-mass?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3349090/pope-leo-calls-peace-dialogue-amid-ukraine-iran-wars-easter-mass?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:35:27 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pope Leo lifted a wooden cross and held it aloft from his waist at the start of the 14 stations of the Way of the Cross at the Colosseum on his first Good Friday as pontiff, marking the first time in decades that a pope has set out to carry the cross to every station. “I think it will be an important sign because of what the pope represents, a spiritual leader in the world today, and for this voice, that everyone wants to hear, that says Christ still suffers,” Leo told reporters this week... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3349008/pope-leo-carries-cross-full-good-friday-procession-first-do-so-decades?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3349008/pope-leo-carries-cross-full-good-friday-procession-first-do-so-decades?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 20:50:00 +0000 dpa dpa The suspected leader of an isolated forest community on the Mediterranean island of Sicily has been arrested on suspicion of aiding and abetting child abuse, Italian news agencies ANSA and Adnkronos reported on Thursday. The suspect is a man of German-Indian origin. He is said to have led a community of 15 people, including two children, who lived in a forest near Cefalu on Sicily’s northern coast. The two children, aged 7 and 11, were reportedly not vaccinated, did not attend school and had to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3348845/italy-arrests-german-indian-guru-child-abuse-allegations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3348845/italy-arrests-german-indian-guru-child-abuse-allegations?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 13:12:02 +0000 Matthew Cheng Matthew Cheng The head of Hong Kong’s Catholic diocese has urged the government to offer young offenders a “second chance to start anew” and to introduce legal provisions to help those with minor criminal records pursue their careers. In his Easter message on Thursday, Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan also encouraged authorities to reduce the use of key performance indicators (KPIs) so that educators could have more time and space to better support students, amid persistently high youth suicide rates. “I call on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3348768/hong-kongs-top-catholic-priest-calls-young-offenders-get-second-chance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3348768/hong-kongs-top-catholic-priest-calls-young-offenders-get-second-chance?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 06:34:24 +0000 Bibek Bhandari Bibek Bhandari As a child, Saraswati Nepali was not allowed to drink from the same water jar as her classmates. When she was thirsty, she had to walk the 20 minutes home and back: the cost of being born a Dalit in a society that deemed her “untouchable”. Now, Nepal’s new government says it is finally ready to acknowledge that injustice. Prime Minister Balendra Shah’s administration announced on Sunday that the state would, for the first time, offer a formal apology to the Dalit community. It also pledged to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3348535/nepal-apologise-untouchable-dalits-first-time?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3348535/nepal-apologise-untouchable-dalits-first-time?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 11:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Gunmen killed at least a dozen people in Jos, the capital of Nigeria’s restive Plateau state, sparking retaliation from a mob that killed 10 more, locals said on Monday. Plateau state, in central Nigeria’s Middle Belt region, experiences recurring violence in the countryside, mostly linked to land disputes between farmers and herders. Jos has seen bouts of sectarian violence in the past, but deadly, mass casualty attacks in the crowded city have been rare in recent years. At least 12 people were... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3348391/mob-retaliates-after-gunmen-kill-12-nigeria-bar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3348391/mob-retaliates-after-gunmen-kill-12-nigeria-bar?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 08:43:35 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Israeli police prevented Catholic leaders from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to celebrate mass on the Christian holiday of Palm Sunday for the first time in centuries, the Latin Patriarchate said on Sunday. Jerusalem’s major holy sites, including the church, are closed because of the continuing war in Iran, as the city has come under frequent fire from Iranian missiles. The Catholic Church called the police decision “a manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3348322/israeli-police-prevent-catholic-leaders-celebrating-palm-sunday-mass-jerusalem?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3348322/israeli-police-prevent-catholic-leaders-celebrating-palm-sunday-mass-jerusalem?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 16:43:39 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Pope Leo on Saturday denounced the widening gap between the haves and have-nots as he visited Monaco, a millionaires’ playground that is the surprise pick for the first Western European trip of his papacy. Arriving by helicopter from Rome, the Pope was greeted by Monaco’s ruler Prince Albert II and his wife Princess Charlene at Monte Carlo’s heliport under radiant sunshine. Just after his arrival at the tiny principality on the French Riviera, Leo condemned what he termed the widening “chasms... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3348236/pope-leo-heads-swanky-monaco-pro-poor-message?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3348236/pope-leo-heads-swanky-monaco-pro-poor-message?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 06:05:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A former nurse made history on Wednesday when she was enthroned as Archbishop of Canterbury, the first woman to lead the centuries-old mother church of the world’s 85 million-strong Anglican community. Sarah Mullally, 63, formally steps into the role after an abuse scandal led to the departure of her predecessor. The former midwife was formally installed in the historic ceremony at Canterbury Cathedral in southeast England in front of around 2,000 people including heir to the throne Prince... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3347909/ex-nurse-enthroned-first-female-archbishop-canterbury?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3347909/ex-nurse-enthroned-first-female-archbishop-canterbury?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 16:49:24 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele In a quiet suburb of the Malaysian city of Klang, Farouk* scrolls through his phone, replaying videos of a toddler learning to walk, laugh and reach out to steady himself – milestone moments of a son whom he is forced to love through a screen. “He is now two years old, but I have never held him,” the 26-year-old Rohingya man said. “I have only seen him twice from afar at the gate.” Farouk’s wife gave birth in a Malaysian immigration detention centre a day after the family were arrested in early... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3347559/malaysias-rohingya-spend-another-eid-torn-their-families?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3347559/malaysias-rohingya-spend-another-eid-torn-their-families?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 10:00:09 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim Steps to narrow the gender gap in Malaysia and Indonesia appear to be falling short, after a major global study found that most people surveyed in both nations remain tethered to traditional views on the roles of women. The study by research firm Ipsos and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London found that 66 and 60 per cent of respondents from Indonesia and Malaysia, respectively, agreed with the statement that “a wife should always obey her husband”, the highest... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3347409/malaysia-indonesia-top-global-poll-obedient-wives?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3347409/malaysia-indonesia-top-global-poll-obedient-wives?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 02:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected accusations on Friday that he had intended to offend Christians when he said the previous day that Jesus had “no advantage” over Genghis Khan. “More fake news about my attitude towards Christians, who are protected and flourish in Israel. Let me be clear: I did not denigrate Jesus Christ at my news conference,” Netanyahu wrote in English on social media. “To the contrary, I cited the great American historian Will Durant. A fervent admirer of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347395/netanyahu-compares-jesus-and-genghis-khan-iran-war-speech-drawing-backlash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347395/netanyahu-compares-jesus-and-genghis-khan-iran-war-speech-drawing-backlash?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Mar 2026 19:23:18 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar Every year, roughly half of Indonesia’s 288 million people pack into trains, buses, ferries and cars and head home. The mudik, as the great Eid ul-Fitr exodus is known, is one of the largest annual human migrations on Earth and a ritual of return that defines the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. This year, the Ministry of Transportation estimates that 143.9 million journeys will be made. But it could hardly arrive at a worse time for the government’s finances. Oil prices have surged... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3346886/oil-price-spike-threatens-break-indonesias-budget-144-million-hit-road-eid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3346886/oil-price-spike-threatens-break-indonesias-budget-144-million-hit-road-eid?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 10:30:11 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Multiple explosions staged by suspected suicide bombers rocked the northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri, killing at least 23 people and wounding more than 100 others, police said Tuesday, . The three blasts, which struck on Monday evening, came after an attack on a military post overnight Sunday to Monday, which authorities blamed on suspected jihadists. Combined with the attack on the military position the evening prior and a mosque bombing in December, the assaults have wrecked a peaceful... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3346862/suicide-attacks-nigeria-kill-23-wound-more-100?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3346862/suicide-attacks-nigeria-kill-23-wound-more-100?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 07:09:51 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia charged two men on Tuesday and was aiming to bring back another from abroad as authorities sought to contain a wave of religiously charged provocations that had sharpened tensions in the multicultural country. Controversial preacher Zamri Vinoth, 41, and activist Arun Dorasamy, 56, both pleaded not guilty in separate magistrates’ courts to charges linked to social media posts that prosecutors said were capable of “causing public alarm”. The cases come as conservative groups push for the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3346845/malaysia-tackles-religious-racial-tensions-2-charged-over-provocative-posts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3346845/malaysia-tackles-religious-racial-tensions-2-charged-over-provocative-posts?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 05:45:03 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The brother of the man who attacked a Michigan synagogue last week, who was killed earlier this month in an Israeli air strike, was a Hezbollah commander, Israel’s military claimed on Sunday. Ibrahim Ghazali was killed in Lebanon along with three other of the attacker’s relatives on March 5 - a week before authorities allege Ayman Mohamad Ghazali drove his car into a major synagogue outside Detroit and killed himself after security fired at him. The FBI’s Detroit office, which is investigating... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346686/brother-michigan-synagogue-attacker-was-hezbollah-commander-israeli-military-claims?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346686/brother-michigan-synagogue-attacker-was-hezbollah-commander-israeli-military-claims?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 17:12:51 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pope Leo XIV demanded a ceasefire in the Middle East on Sunday in his strongest comments to date, directly addressing the leaders who launched the war in Iran. “On behalf of the Christians of the Middle East and all women and men of good will, I appeal to those responsible for this conflict,” Pope Leo said. “Cease fire so that avenues for dialogue may be reopened. Violence can never lead to the justice, stability and peace that the people are waiting for.” Pope Leo did not cite the United States... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3346681/cease-fire-pope-leo-demands-end-middle-east-war-urging-those-responsible-talk?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3346681/cease-fire-pope-leo-demands-end-middle-east-war-urging-those-responsible-talk?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 14:36:40 +0000 Ng Kang-chung Ng Kang-chung Two monks have clashed during a religious ceremony at a historical Buddhist monastery in Hong Kong, leaving one injured and the other in police custody. Police officers were called to Chuk Lam Sim Yuen in Tsuen Wan at around 9.40am on Saturday after a report about a fight involving two monks, a force spokesman said. Preliminary investigations revealed the two monks, aged 51 and 57, were attending a ceremony at the monastery when they got into a quarrel over queuing, which escalated into a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3346607/2-monks-brawl-during-temple-ceremony-hong-kong-leaving-1-injured?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3346607/2-monks-brawl-during-temple-ceremony-hong-kong-leaving-1-injured?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 11:14:17 +0000 Cameron Dueck Cameron Dueck We approach from the east, leaving the main islands of Japan behind. The late afternoon sun bounces off the sea in a blinding glare as our anchor chain rattles out of its locker and slides into a small bay off Tairajima Island. All is still as our sailing boat, the Teng Hoi, gracefully pirouettes in the currents, searching for her point of balance, where she’ll rest for the night. Below the sinking sun stretch the Goto Islands, or Goto Retto, literally “five-island chain”, an archipelago of 140... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3345546/remote-villages-surprise-cocktail-bars-and-hilltop-churches-nagasakis-goto-islands?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3345546/remote-villages-surprise-cocktail-bars-and-hilltop-churches-nagasakis-goto-islands?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2026 03:00:07 +0000