Philippines’ Catholics welcome new pope with hope

Special Pope Leo XIV delivers the Regina Caeli prayer from the main central loggia balcony of St Peter’s basilica in The Vatican, on May 11, 2025. (AFP)
Pope Leo XIV delivers the Regina Caeli prayer from the main central loggia balcony of St Peter’s basilica in The Vatican, on May 11, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 11 May 2025
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Philippines’ Catholics welcome new pope with hope

Pope Leo XIV delivers the Regina Caeli prayer from the main central loggia balcony of St Peter’s basilica in The Vatican.
  • About 80 percent of Philippines’ 110 million population are Catholics
  • Before his election, Pope Leo XIV had made several visits to the Philippines

MANILA: Filipinos joined Catholics around the world on Sunday to welcome the newly elected leader of their church, expressing hope and optimism for the papacy of Pope Leo XIV. 

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost became the 267th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday. The 69-year-old is the first North American pope and had spent more than two decades as a missionary in Peru. 

Pope Leo follows in the footsteps of Pope Francis, who died on April 21 after a series of health issues. He was 88 years old. 

In the Philippines, home to about 85 million Catholics, devotees who had closely followed the conclave to elect a new pope rejoiced at the outcome.  

“He feels like the kind of leader the Catholic Church needs right now — someone who will continue the work Pope Francis started, especially in fighting for the rights of migrants and calling for peace by stopping the current wars,” Kris Crismundo, a church choir member from Bulacan province, told Arab News. 

“It’s clear that he's someone with a heart for service, compassion, and unity, which are exactly the qualities the world needs more of today … I look forward to seeing where his leadership takes us.”

The Philippines is one of only two majority Christian countries in Asia, along with tiny East Timor. 

With nearly 80 percent of the population belonging to the Catholic Church, many in the country have a special affection for their religious leader. 

During a 2015 visit, Pope Francis drew a record crowd of more than six million people at a historic mass in Manila. When he died, masses were held throughout the archipelagic country in his honor.

“I have loved Pope Francis, but we have to accept God’s divine plan. A new pope is always a fresh start, and can give hope to all,” Manila-based journalist Karen Ow-Yong told Arab News. 

She sees Pope Leo’s background in Peru as a “glimpse of what his papacy” will look like.  

“We hope for a modern-day Pope who can relate and address modern-day challenges facing Catholics,” she said. “I wish for the new pope to be the light that shines on the darkest issues of humanity today, as well as to push for transparency and accountability, especially in issues and controversies involving the church.” 

Jaime Laude, a journalist and former seminarian from Antique province, highlighted similarities between Pope Leo and his predecessor. 

“Just like the late pontiff, he's been deeply immersed with the marginalized people in society like those in the Philippines, especially in Latin America where for decades he’s been assigned,” Laude said. 

“I, for one, have high hopes that the new pontiff will further strengthen the Catholic faith in all of us Roman Catholic believers … also hoping that his advocacies through faith and teachings will promote world peace.” 

Many Filipinos were aware that Pope Leo was no stranger to the Philippines, because he has visited over the years, according to reports from local media. 

Angeline Patricia Fae, an analyst in Manila, is hoping to see a continuation of Pope Francis’s papacy. 

“I hope that the new Pope Leo XIV will continue what Pope Francis preached and embodied: a church that is welcoming and accepting,” she told Arab News. 

“I pray for a fruitful rule and as well for his well-being. God bless.”

Other Filipinos are hopeful that the new pope will bridge divisions in an increasingly chaotic world. 

“I wish the holy father to be a prophet of dialogue in our divided world,” Ted Tuvera, a Filipino theologian and candidate for priesthood, said. 

“Instead of seeing the ‘other’ as ‘others,’ may we see and meet them as neighbors.” 

Monsi Alfonso Serrano, who is based in Manila, believes that Pope Leo’s election will neutralize the divisions created by US President Donald Trump. 

“The name of Cardinal Robert Prevost didn’t surface as a potential pontiff … This is how God works; mysterious and beyond human comprehension,” Serrano said. 

“The pope’s first address was a call for building bridges since Trump has been enjoying driving wedges between different countries in the world … The world needs a pope that calls to build bridges instead of walls.”


Malaysia ex-PM Mahathir, 100, discharged from hospital

Malaysia ex-PM Mahathir, 100, discharged from hospital
Updated 6 sec ago
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Malaysia ex-PM Mahathir, 100, discharged from hospital

Malaysia ex-PM Mahathir, 100, discharged from hospital
  • Mahathir Mohamad was leader of the Southeast Asian nation for more than two decades
  • He has been hospitalized repeatedly in recent years, most recently in October for a respiratory infection
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has been discharged from hospital, his office said on Sunday, after being admitted for fatigue following a picnic celebration for his 100th birthday.
Mahathir, leader of the Southeast Asian nation for more than two decades, has a history of heart problems and has undergone bypass surgeries. He has been hospitalized repeatedly in recent years, most recently in October for a respiratory infection.
He was under observation at the National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur for fatigue-related issues on Sunday, his office said. “Mahathir has been allowed home as of 4:45 p.m. (0845 GMT),” it said in a statement.
A physician who was a member of parliament until 2022, Mahathir drove himself on Sunday to the celebration, which also marked the 99th birthday of his wife, Hasmah Mohd Ali, a day earlier, local media reported.
The reports said he cycled for an hour before appearing tired. His birthday was on Thursday.
Mahathir was prime minister for 22 years until 2003. He returned as premier in 2018 after leading the opposition coalition to a historic win, but his government collapsed in less than two years due to infighting.

Several hurt in anti-migrant unrest in Spanish town

Several hurt in anti-migrant unrest in Spanish town
Updated 33 min 4 sec ago
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Several hurt in anti-migrant unrest in Spanish town

Several hurt in anti-migrant unrest in Spanish town
  • The regional government did not say how many people were injured but stated that at least one person had been arrested for the violence.

MADRID: Several people were hurt in a second night of anti-migrant unrest in the Spanish town of Torre Pacheco after a pensioner was beaten up, authorities said on Sunday.
Despite a major police presence, groups armed with batons roamed the streets looking for foreign-origin people, regional newspaper La Opinion de Murcia reported.
The regional government did not say how many people were injured but stated that at least one person had been arrested for the violence.
The unrest erupted after a 68-year-old man told Spanish media he was beaten up in the street on Wednesday by three youths of North African origin.
The attack was filmed and put on social media.
The town hall organized a demonstration on Friday that was intended to be peaceful but where far-right elements shouted anti-migrant slogans.
One group, named “Deport Them Now,” posted a message on social media calling for attacks against people of North African origin.
Spanish authorities launched an appeal for calm on Sunday in the town of 36,000 people.
“Torre Pacheco must get back to normal,” said the head of the Murcian regional government Fernando Lopez Miras in a message on X.
“I understand the frustration but nothing justifies violence,” added the conservative politician.
“I call on residents to be calm, for tranquility,” said Torre Pacheco mayor, Pedro Angel Roca Ternel, on RTVE public television.
Spain’s Youth Minister Sira Rego, a member of the extreme left wing party Sumar, condemned the violence against migrants in a message on Bluesky, blaming the role of the “ultra-right” in the unrest.


Russia takes new village in Ukraine’s Donetsk region

Russia takes new village in Ukraine’s Donetsk region
Updated 13 July 2025
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Russia takes new village in Ukraine’s Donetsk region

Russia takes new village in Ukraine’s Donetsk region
  • Russian troops advance toward the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region
  • Russia’s defense ministry say troops had captured the village of Myrne

MOSCOW: Russia said on Sunday it took another village in the west of Ukraine’s Donetsk region, as its troops advance toward the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region.

Moscow’s offensive on Ukraine has lasted for more than three years, with attacks intensifying this summer and US-led negotiations so far yielding no results to end the fighting.

Russia’s defense ministry said Russian troops had captured the village of Myrne, calling the village by its Soviet name “Karl Marx.”

It lies close to the administrative border between the Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions.

The ministry claimed forces had moved “deep into the enemy’s defense” to take the village.

Myrne was one of two villages Moscow claimed on Sunday.

Russia has for months refused a ceasefire proposed by the United States and Kyiv.

Moscow launched its full-scale offensive against Ukraine in February 2022.


France says Australia defense ties repaired after submarine row

France says Australia defense ties repaired after submarine row
Updated 13 July 2025
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France says Australia defense ties repaired after submarine row

France says Australia defense ties repaired after submarine row
  • Paris expressed its “strong regrets” when Australia tore up a multibillion-dollar deal to buy a fleet of diesel-powered submarines from France

SYDNEY: France’s defense relations with Australia have recovered after their 2021 bust-up over a major submarine contract, the country’s ambassador said Sunday.
Paris expressed its “strong regrets” when Australia tore up a multibillion-dollar deal to buy a fleet of diesel-powered submarines from France, Ambassador Pierre-Andre Imbert said.
Since the 2022 election of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, however, the defense relationship had been “restarted,” he said.
“Now, the first pillar of our cooperation is defense and security, so we have a very good level of cooperation,” the ambassador told AFP as French forces joined major military drills around Australia.
When Australia ditched the French deal, it opted instead to acquire nuclear-powered vessels in a new three-way AUKUS pact with the United States and Britain.
But a US defense official last month revealed that a review of AUKUS was underway to ensure it “aligned with the President’s America First agenda” and that the US defense industrial base was “meeting our needs.”
Under the AUKUS deal, Australia would acquire at least three Virginia class submarines from the United States within 15 years, eventually manufacturing its own subs.
The US Navy has 24 Virginia-class vessels but American shipyards are struggling to meet production targets set at two new boats each year.
Asked if France would ever consider discussing a new submarine deal with Australia if the AUKUS agreement was torpedoed by the review, the French ambassador said he was reluctant to speculate.
“I would say it’s more an issue for Australia for the moment. And of course, we are always discussing with our friends of Australia,” he said.
“But for the moment, they have chosen AUKUS,” he said. “If this changes (and) they ask, we’ll see.”
More than 30,000 military personnel from 19 nations are set to join the three-week, annual Talisman Sabre military exercises, which started Sunday across Australia and Papua New Guinea.


Australia PM Albanese kicks off China visit focused on trade

Australia PM Albanese kicks off China visit focused on trade
Updated 13 July 2025
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Australia PM Albanese kicks off China visit focused on trade

Australia PM Albanese kicks off China visit focused on trade
  • Anthony Albanese is set to meet business, tourism and sport representatives in Shanghai and Chengdu
  • Albanese wants to reduce Australia’s economic dependence on China, a free trade partner

BEIJING: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese kicked off a visit to China this weekend meant to shore up trade relations between the two countries.

Albanese met with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining on Sunday, the first in a series of high-level exchanges that will include meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and Chairman Zhao Leji of the National People’s Congress.

Albanese is leading “a very large business delegation” to China, which speaks to the importance of the economic relations between Australia and China, he told Chinese state broadcaster CGTN upon his arrival in Shanghai Saturday.

During a weeklong trip, Albanese is set to meet business, tourism and sport representatives in Shanghai and Chengdu including a CEO roundtable Tuesday in Beijing, his office said.

It is Albanese’s second visit to China since his center-left Labour Party government was first elected in 2022. The party was reelected in May with an increased majority.

Albanese has managed to persuade Beijing to remove a series of official and unofficial trade barriers introduced under the previous conservative government that cost Australian exporters more than 20 billion Australian dollars ($13 billion) a year.

Beijing severed communications with the previous administration over issues including Australia’s calls for an independent inquiry into the origins of and responses to COVID-19. But Albanese wants to reduce Australia’s economic dependence on China, a free trade partner.

“My government has worked very hard to diversify trade … and to increase our relationships with other countries in the region, including India and Indonesia and the ASEAN countries,” Albanese said before his visit, referring to the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

“But the relationship with China is an important one, as is our relationships when it comes to exports with the north Asian economies of South Korea and Japan,” he added.

Chinese state-run Xinhua News Agency, in an editorial Sunday, described China’s relationship with Australia as “steadily improving” and undergoing “fresh momentum.”

“There are no fundamental conflicts of interest between China and Australia,” the editorial stated. “By managing differences through mutual respect and focusing on shared interests, the two sides can achieve common prosperity and benefit.”