International
About 150,000 people say goodbye to the pope in St. Peter’s Basilica before the funeral
About 150,000 people have passed before Pope Francis’ coffin in the Vatican basilica to say goodbye, in the last three days and until noon this Friday, the eve of his funeral.
The spokesman for the Holy See, Matteo Bruni, confirmed the figure until 12.00 local hours (10.00 GMT).
The passage of the faithful has remained constant in the last few hours, after last night the basilica remained open until 2.30 am (0.30 GMT) and reopened at 5.40 (3.40 GMT).
The Holy See had to change the initial plans of closing the tempo at night so that the thousands of faithful who arrived from all over the world could say goodbye to the pontiff.
The burning chapel of Francis will remain open until 7:00 p.m. local time (17.00 GMT) this afternoon, and then proceed to the ceremony of closing the coffin before its solemn funeral, on Saturday morning.
The Italian Civil Protection has launched an alert on all mobile phones in Rome to warn that the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square will be closed this afternoon to prepare for the funeral.
The warning, also audible, appeared on mobile phones through the IT-alert system, used in emergencies.
“Civil Protection Department – Farewell to Pope Francis. Closing time of St. Peter’s Square from 5:00 p.m. (3:00 p.m.) on April 25. For tours and schedules of the funeral www.protezionecivile.it«, read the message.
The notice could be read on the telephone screens in Italian, English, French and Spanish due to the high number of tourists and faithful who are in the Italian capital and, above all, in the vicinity of the Vatican.
The Italian authorities estimate that around 200,000 faithful will attend the funeral by the pontiff on Saturday, after which the coffin will be transferred in a funeral procession to the basilica of Santa María la Mayor, where Francis expressed his desire to be buried.
A total of 149 cardinals have already arrived in Rome of the total of 252 that make up the cardinal college, although only 133 will enter the conclave to choose a successor for being under 80 years old, a mandatory rule.
The cardinals who will participate in the funeral tomorrow will visit the tomb of the Argentine pope on Sunday.
The funerals also mark the beginning of the ‘Novendial’, the period of nine days of mourning in the Vatican for the death of the pontiff.
As for the conclave, Vatican legislation establishes that it must begin within a maximum period of 20 days after the death of the pope, which occurred on April 21.
That is why the cardinals are expected to be locked up in the Sistine Chapel between May 5, when mourning ends, and the 10th, when the period of 20 days without a pope is fulfilled.
The Sistine Chapel has announced its closure from April 28 to prepare for the conclave.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
International
Caracas shuts embassy in Oslo without explanation following Machado’s Nobel win
Venezuela has announced the closure of its embassy in Norway, just days after opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Venezuelan diplomatic mission provided no explanation for its decision on Monday.
“It is regrettable,” a ministry spokesperson said. “Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue with Venezuela open and will continue to work in that direction.” The ministry also emphasized that the Nobel Committee operates entirely independently from the Norwegian government.
In its announcement, the Nobel Committee stated that Machado met the criteria established by Alfred Nobel, “embodying the hope for a different future, where the fundamental rights of Venezuelans are heard.”
International
Sheinbaum: Urgent to restore access to towns cut off by heavy rains
Thousands of military personnel and civilians in Mexico worked tirelessly on Tuesday to clear roads blocked by the torrential rains of recent days, which have left more than 300 communities cut off across central and eastern regions of the country. Authorities also launched mass fumigation efforts in several affected areas to prevent the spread of dengue fever.
The official death toll remains at 64, though dozens of people are still missing. President Claudia Sheinbaumacknowledged that the government does not yet know the full situation in many of the isolated villages, which range in population from 500 to 1,000 inhabitants.
“The reopening of roads is one of the greatest urgencies,” Sheinbaum said. “It’s essential to guarantee air bridges, food supplies, clean water, and a proper census of the isolated communities so we can determine the condition of every person living there.”
Private construction companies are also assisting the effort with heavy machinery and technical support to help reopen highways and reconnect rural areas.
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Caracas shuts embassy in Oslo without explanation following Machado’s Nobel win
Sheinbaum: Urgent to restore access to towns cut off by heavy rains
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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