International

Pope Leo XIV signals focus on social justice and AI challenges

Pope Leo XIV explained on Saturday that he chose his papal name to reflect a strong commitment to social causes in response to the challenges posed by the new industrial revolution and the rise of artificial intelligence.

The new leader of the Catholic Church, born in the United States and naturalized Peruvian, has drawn global attention since his election on Thursday. In a speech to the College of Cardinals, the 69-year-old pontiff said the choice of his name was inspired by Pope Leo XIII, known for championing workers’ rights during the 19th century.

“I considered taking the name Leo XIV. There are several reasons, but the main one is that Pope Leo XIII, through his historic encyclical Rerum Novarum, addressed the social question during the first great industrial revolution,” said the new pope.

The 1891 encyclical, which translates roughly to “new things” or “innovations,” is considered the foundation of the Catholic Church’s social doctrine, emphasizing human dignity, solidarity, and the common good.

“Today, the Church offers its body of social teaching to help respond to another industrial revolution and to developments in artificial intelligence, which bring new challenges for defending human dignity, justice, and labor,” he added.

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In the first Mass of his pontificate on Friday, the former missionary from Chicago—who served as a bishop in Peru—lamented the decline of faith in favor of “money,” “power,” and “pleasure.”

Following his election as spiritual leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, Robert Francis Prevost has gradually revealed his pastoral style. On Thursday night, during his first public appearance from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, he addressed the crowd in both Italian and Spanish.

International

Tehran airports resume operations as Iran lifts airspace closure

Iran announced on Thursday the full reopening of its airspace, including over the capital Tehran, after it was closed on June 13 — the first day of the war with Israel.

According to the official IRNA news agency, international airports in Tehran (Mehrabad and Imam Khomeini), as well as airports in the north, east, west, and south of the country, have resumed operations and are ready to handle flights.

Iran had completely shut down its airspace on June 13 following Israel’s unprecedented airstrikes. On June 25, one day after a ceasefire was declared, flight operations had resumed gradually, though only in the eastern regions.

On June 28, Iran further expanded the reopening of its airspace to include foreign airlines flying over its territory.

As of Thursday, only the airports in Isfahan (central Iran) and Tabriz (northwest) remain closed, as both cities were repeatedly targeted in Israeli airstrikes and their infrastructure is still under repair, IRNA said.

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International

Man attacks passengers with axe on german ICE Train

A man attacked several passengers with an axe aboard an ICE train in the southern German state of Bavaria on Thursday.

According to police, four people sustained minor injuries during the incident, and the suspect was taken into custodyshortly afterward.

The attack occurred shortly before 2:00 p.m. (local time) on ICE train number 91, which was traveling from Hamburg-Altona to Vienna, Austria, according to German newspaper Bild.

Authorities have not yet released further details regarding the motive or the identity of the attacker.

International

Trump to decide soon on deportation exemptions for construction and farm workers

U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Tuesday in Florida that he will make a decision in the coming weeks regarding exemptions from deportations for workers in the construction and agriculture sectors.

Trump made these remarks to the media during a visit to the new migrant detention center, ‘Alligator Alcatraz,’ located in the middle of a wetland in Florida, the White House reported.

ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) raids have targeted many of these workers, sparking fear among them and threatening to slow down two sectors that are vital to the U.S. economy.

In construction, 25.7% of workers are immigrants, and 14.1% of the total workforce nationwide is undocumented, according to the American Immigration Council.

In agriculture, the percentage of undocumented employees rises to 42%, according to data from the Department of Agriculture cited by the New York Times.