Libya needs global solidarity after its devastating and deadly floods, Pope Francis says. There’s a desperate search for thousands of people missing after a powerful storm burst dams near the Mediterranean city of Derna on 10 September. That event unleashed a torrent of water that devastated at least a quarter of Derna’s buildings. Buildings along Read more
We can end human trafficking with a multi-pronged approach that fights trafficking and aids victims, Archbishop Paul Gallagher told global leaders at a United Nations (UN) event last week. Ending this “modern slavery” has been a major priority for Pope Francis, Gallagher said. The Catholic Church is collaborating “with both the public and private sectors, Read more
A nuclear disarmament conference will be held at the Vatican in November this year. Archbishop Silvano Maria Tomasi says the Vatican is working to convince the public that the world is safer without nuclear weapons, rather than with them. Tomasi is the delegate secretary to the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, which is working Read more
Rather than North Korea and the United States (US) risking a nuclear war, Pope Francis suggests a third party could help them find a way to cool off before a good part of humanity is destroyed. During an in-flight press conference following his visit to Egypt, Francis suggested Norway as a possible mediator. “It (Norway) Read more
ROME – Talk of an “impending population bomb,” the Vatican’s representative to the United Nations said on Wednesday, has led to sometimes “draconian” policies, which ignore the complex nature of population growth. Filipino Archbishop Bernardito Auza, speaking to the UN’s Commission on Population and Development, said “differing regional and even country specific situations” need to Read more
The United States government has refused to continue paying into the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). They say the money is used to fund forced abortions and sterilisations in China. “This is a victory for women and children across the globe, as well as for US taxpayers, ” says Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Dolan is the chairman Read more
The Vatican has published a letter the Pope wrote to the UN last week about banning nuclear weapons. In this he urged the UN to “commit … to a world without nuclear weapons”. Read more
Pope Francis and the nuclear powers are at odds over nukes. To ban or not to ban? Francis says ban all nukes. He made his view plain in a message read this week at the “United Nations conference aimed at negotiating a legally binding instrument on the prohibition of nuclear weapons, leading to their total Read more
The Vatican permanent UN observer wants action to combat biological weapons. To do this, countries need to work together Archbishop Ivan Jurkovič says. Read more