International
The Israeli Army confirms the incursion into the Shujaiya neighborhood, in Gaza, due to the “presence” of militiamen
The Israeli Army confirmed this Friday in a statement its incursion into the Shujaiya neighborhood, in the northern city of Gaza, already besieged last December, due to the “presence” of militiamen and military infrastructure, after receiving information from its intelligence.
“Simultaneously with the entry of the troops, fighter planes attacked dozens of terrorist infrastructure sites in Hamas,” the Army details in the note about this operation that, he says, began on Thursday morning and maintained this morning.
Palestinian sources confirmed yesterday to EFE the entry of Israeli tanks into the Shujaiya neighborhood and aerial bombings that occurred in parallel, causing the death of at least seven Palestinians and leaving about thirty injured.
Before launching this operation, Israeli forces attacked other points in the northern Strip where they “eliminated dozens” of fighters who, they say, were hiding in UNRWA schools, according to their statement.
“During this past night, our planes also attacked a Hamas terrorist in an area of Deir al Balah (central Gaza), which was operating from within a humanitarian zone,” they add in the statement.
On the other hand, Gaza medical sources reported the death of at least 11 people and more than 40 injured in the humanitarian zone of Al Mawasi, in the western part of Rafah, south of the Strip, after an Israeli bombing last night.
Most of the Gaza people who took refuge in Rafah, the city on the border with Egypt, moved to the coastal area of Al Mawasi, by order of Israel, after the start of the Israeli land invasion of this southern city last May.
The official spokesman for Civil Defense in Rafah, Ahmad Redwan, denounces that hundreds of Gaza families slept on the street last night after the incursion and attack by Israeli troops on this camp considered supposedly a safe area by Israel.
The Palestinian news agency Wafa also reports Israeli air and artillery attacks in the early hours of this morning against homes in central Gaza that left at least four civilians dead, including a woman and a child.
In almost nine months of war, the Israeli offensive has already left more than 37,700 people dead, mostly women and children, and another 86,429 injured; in addition to schools, hospitals and residential buildings destroyed.
The Israeli Security Cabinet approved this morning to legalize five outposts (inities of illegal settlements) in the occupied West Bank and to impose new sanctions on the Palestinian National Authority (ANP) at the proposal of the Minister of Finance, the far-right, Bezalel Smotrich.
“These are measures that protect the State of Israel and convey a clear message: We will never establish a terrorist state in the Land of Israel! The actions against the State of Israel and in favor of the unilateral recognition of a Palestinian State received an appropriate Zionist response!” Minister Smotrich wrote in his X account.
The president of the Yesha Council, Israel Ganz, the body that brings together all the settlements of the occupied West Bank, welcomed this decision that assured “strengthens the State of Israel.”
“In these difficult days, when we are at war for our home, strengthening the communities in the land of our ancestors is the appropriate Zionist response,” Ganz said.
The five legalized settlements are Evyatar, Givat Assaf, Sde Efraim, Heletz and Adorayim.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
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