International

From email to marriage: the day Pope Francis married a Uruguayan couple

The unexpected recovery of little Sara after being sprayed with holy water while hospitalized was the kick-off of the email exchange that made it possible for Pope Francis to marry Uruguayans Noelia Franco and Omar Caballero by surprise, in the Vatican and in front of his daughters.

September 19, 2018 was not just another day for the Caballero Franco family, who, to this day, are not clear why the Supreme Pontiff decided, responding to an email, to receive them in the private audience in which, unexpectedly, he officiated his marriage by the church and shared with them “the secret of the happy and lasting marriage”.

This is assured in dialogue with EFE by the mother of five daughters who dates back to 2014, when, shortly after being born, Sara – the youngest – had to be admitted to an Intensive Treatment Center for the VRS virus and applied a few drops of water blessed by Francis that a friend had brought from the Vatican.

“With my husband we said that we were going to put it on and that if he was saved we were going to go to the Vatican to thank him and it was like that. We put the droplets on her and automatically she entered the exit curve and came out,” says who, before the little girl turned two years old, traveled with her to Rome to thank her in person.

From that meeting he returned with “a lot of holy water” and rosaries, but also with the earring that his husband and other daughters knew him; so he let his secretary know in an email in which he mentioned that he wanted him to bless his 24-year marriage, because they had never been able to officiate him for the church because he did not have money “even for the rings.”

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“They answered our email and we started in Rome. It was all crazy, because we only had an email, which could have been someone’s joke: ‘I’ll wait for you at eight on September 19 9:15 at Casa Santa Marta’,” he says about the answer by which, after going through security checks, they ended up waiting for him in a room.

“At one point they make us stop, priests begin to pass and he appears with his arms like this – raised -, he shouts ‘Uruguayans!’ and there we loosened (the nerves) (…) He was a grandfather sitting with the family, talking about things about Uruguay, about Argentina,” he recalls the talk that gave rise to the unexpected question about whether they wanted to be married by him.

“We were tough and a great joke was sent. He said ‘the hare must be grabbed when it is locked up’ (…) and there he married us,” says who explains that, after his general audience, he talked again and dismissed them with some words that they still cherish: “He grabs our hand and tells us ‘I’m going to tell you the secret of happy and lasting marriage: with you, bread and onion’ and there he left.”

Marked both by that message, which they interpret as a reminder of being together “in good times and in bad times” and by the closeness of a Francisco whom they last saw last September, when he blessed the marriage of another of his daughters, the Caballero Francos only have left, to “comply with him”, “thank him”.

“He was a pope who was not of this world. He already did what he had to do, he faced what he had to face and leaves us with a new world now to debate what we can solve,” Franco emphasizes about the first Latin American pontiff, whose death, far from crying, his family took with happiness because, he says, “he is today on the side of Jesus.”

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Without being clear why he was so generous, to the point of giving his approval to the giant mandala of tribute to the Abrahamic religions that today the family builds on the land of its tourist enterprise, also designed in honor of the Argentine, Franco insists that all that remains is to “tell the story”.

“We know we have to tell their story, our story. Not only to Catholics, to Christians, but to the people who approach us to listen. Many people come to tell them this and it’s what we have left to do,” he concludes.

International

Mexico and Guatemala Agree on Five-Point Binational Plan for 2027

Mexico and Guatemala agreed Tuesday on a 2027 Binational Plan built around five areas of cooperation, along with a schedule of meetings and initiatives aimed at making progress by the end of 2026 on security, border infrastructure, human mobility, development and technical and social cooperation.

The agreement was announced by the foreign ministers of both countries following a meeting in Mexico City.

Mexican Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco said the plan will establish the “direction and priorities” of bilateral relations for next year. His Guatemalan counterpart, Carlos Ramiro Martínez, said the meeting allowed both governments to make decisions, schedule activities and revitalize bilateral cooperation mechanisms.

Security and border infrastructure

In the area of security, the two governments have nearly completed negotiations on a new memorandum of understanding for the Mexico-Guatemala High-Level Security Group (Ganseg), which was reactivated in 2025.

The countries expect to sign the agreement in the coming months to strengthen coordination and their ability to respond to shared security threats.

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Regarding their nearly 1,000-kilometer shared border, Mexico and Guatemala agreed to advance infrastructure improvements at border crossings and continue work on a joint cargo clearance program between Ciudad Hidalgo and Tecún Umán, two border areas separated by the Suchiate River.

The measures are intended to facilitate bilateral trade while making cross-border exchanges safer and more efficient.

The two governments will also continue defining a route toward a railway connection between their countries through Line K of Mexico’s Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (CIIT), with the aim of strengthening economic and community ties.

Migration and development

On human mobility, Mexico and Guatemala will maintain coordination to ensure safe, orderly and dignified returns, while strengthening protection for people in transit.

The bilateral agenda also includes a second phase of the Sembrando Vida program in Guatemala, which is expected to benefit 10,000 people across 15 departments.

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Both countries will also advance initiatives under Juntos para el Bienestar, as well as six technical, scientific and energy cooperation projects approved by the Joint Commission.

The agreements seek to strengthen bilateral ties and establish concrete priorities for cooperation between Mexico and Guatemala during 2027.

International

France to Expel Two Iranian Diplomats Over Alleged Attack on French Officials

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced Tuesday, August 18, 2026, that France will expel two Iranian diplomats in response to what Paris described as an attack on two French representatives in Iran last month.

“Two French diplomats were scandalously and deliberately assaulted on July 19. I had announced that this intolerable act would have consequences. It has now happened. Two Iranian diplomats in France will be expelled in the coming days,” Barrot said in a message posted on X.

The two Iranian diplomats have been declared persona non grata and will be required to leave France within the coming days, according to the French foreign minister.

About a month ago, Barrot said that two members of the French diplomatic staff had been detained by Iranian security forces for several hours. One of them was also subjected to harassment, he said.

The French government described the incident as an “extremely serious act of intimidation” that violated diplomatic immunity.

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The two French embassy staff members were working on programs supporting Iranian civil society, particularly initiatives involving artists and researchers.

Iran has denied France’s allegations regarding the incident. The diplomatic dispute comes amid already strained relations between Paris and Tehran.

International

Heat wave puts more than 70 million Americans under alerts as temperatures near 46°C

36 deaths reported due to heat wave in Nuevo Leon, Mexico

More than 70 million people remained under heat alerts Monday as an intense heat wave continued across the southern United States, particularly Florida and states along the Mexican border, where temperatures and heat indexes could reach as high as 46 degrees Celsius, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

Several cities recorded or tied temperature records over the weekend and into Monday, including Miami and Fort Lauderdale in Florida; Laredo, Borger and Austin’s airport in Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina; and Memphis, Tennessee.

The NWS warned that the heat wave will continue affecting the southern and southeastern United States, with maximum temperatures expected to remain near 38°C to 40°C for several days. The heat index, which combines temperature and humidity to estimate how hot conditions feel, could reach 46°C.

The extreme heat is also spreading into the Southwest, where temperatures began rising again between Monday and Tuesday. Forecast highs in the region range from about 38°C to 43°C.

Heat alerts remain in effect across Nevada, Arizona and California, including areas in southern Arizona and California near the Mexican border, as authorities warn of the risks posed by prolonged extreme temperatures.

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The NWS urged residents to limit outdoor activity, stay hydrated, ensure access to air conditioning or cooling centers, and check on vulnerable friends, neighbors and family members.

The United States is experiencing a summer marked by above-average temperatures and repeated heat waves. One of the most intense episodes occurred during the July 4 weekend, when extreme heat was blamed for roughly 30 deaths.

July was the hottest month ever recorded in the United States since measurements began, with the average temperature across the contiguous country approaching 25°C, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The combination of extreme heat and drought conditions has also fueled wildfires. Nearly 3 million hectares have burned across the country so far in 2026, making it the largest area affected by wildfires in a decade.