Pope names 2021 as year of family, offers advice to keep peace
ROME — Pope Francis on Sunday proclaimed an upcoming year dedicated to the family as he doubled down on one of his papal priorities and urged renewed attention to his controversial 2016 document on family life.
Francis announced the upcoming year on the family would begin March 19, the fifth anniversary of his document “The Joy of Love.” Among other things, the document opened the door to letting divorced and civilly remarried couples receive Communion, sparking criticism and even claims of heresy from conservative Catholics.
Francis penned the document after summoning bishops from around the world to debate how the Catholic Church can better minister to families. While the divorce-remarriage issue dominated headlines during the backto-back synods, the discussion also touched on ministering to gay people and other “non-traditional” families.
Francis made the comments during his Sunday noon blessing, delivered from inside his studio to prevent people from gathering in St. Peter’s Square below as part of the Vatican’s anti-virus precautions.
In making the announcement, Francis offered some friendly papal advice to bickering families, reminding them to say “pardon me, thank you and sorry” and never end the day without making peace.
South Africa outbreak: South Africa’s COVID-19 spike has taken the country to more than 1 million confirmed cases on Sunday and President Cyril Ramaphosa called an emergency meeting of the National Coronavirus Command Council.
The country’s new variant of the coronavirus, 501.V2, is more contagious and has quickly become dominant in many areas of the resurgence, according to experts.
With South Africa’s hospitals reaching capacity and no sign of the new surge reaching a peak, Ramaphosa is expected to announce a return to restrictive measures designed to slow the spread of the disease.
South Africa announced a cumulative total of 1,004,431 confirmed cases of COVID-19 Sunday. That number includes 26,735 deaths in a country of 60 million people.
The mutation of the COVID-19 virus has made it bind more efficiently to cells within our bodies, say experts.
Vaccinations haven’t yet reached South Africa.
Navalny case: A top associate of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny wasreleased from detention Sunday and said she was charged with trespassing after ringing the doorbell of an alleged security operative who inadvertently revealed details of Navalny’s supposed poisoning with a Soviet-era nerve agent.
Lyubov Sobol, a key figure in Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, was detained for 48 hours Friday after a day of interrogation. The move followed Sobol’s attempt to reach the alleged operative in his Moscow apartment whom Navalny had previously duped into revealing details of his alleged poisoning.
Sobol and her allies denied the accusations and maintained that she violated no law by ringing the doorbell to the apartment. While Sobol was being questioned, the state Investigative Committee issued a statement accusing her of violent trespassing — criminal charges that carry a sentence of up to two years in prison.
Shortly after her release from detention Sunday, Sobol told reporters she has been formally
charged and insisted the case against her was “revenge” on Navalny.
Navalny, whois convalescing in Germany, released the recording of a phone call he said he made to a man he identified as Konstantin Kudryavtsev and described as an alleged member of a group of officers of the Federal Security Service, or FSB, whopurportedly poisoned him with the Soviet-era Novichok agent in August and then tried to cover it up.
Navalny fell sick during the Aug. 20 flight in Russia and was flown to Berlin while still in a coma for treatment two days later. Labs in Germany, France and Sweden, and tests by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, established that he was exposed to a Soviet-era Novichok nerve agent.
Russia has denied involvement in the poisoning.
British storm: Hurricane-force
winds and heavy rainstorms battered parts of Britain, disrupting train services and stranding drivers in floodwaters Sunday.
The Isle of Wight saw Storm Bella’s strongest gusts hit 106 mph, while parts of the south coast of England and north Wales also saw gusts of around 80 mph. Flooding on the tracks caused train cancellations and delays in southern England, and a main train line into London was blocked by a fallen tree.
Some 1,000 people had to be evacuated from a flooded caravan park in Northampton on Christmas Day as heavy rain flooded the site.
Uganda violence: A bodyguard for Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine was killed and two journalists injured Sunday amid confrontations between security forces and followers of the singer and lawmaker whois challenging the country’s longtime leader.
Wine, whose real name is Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, said his bodyguard had died of his injuries after allegedly being run over by a truck belonging to the military police.
The victim, Francis Senteza, was attacked while helping to transport a journalist injured in an earlier confrontation between police and a group of Wine’s supporters, he said.
Police said in a statement that while trying to quell confrontations with Wine’s supporters, “journalists were regrettably caught up during the process of dispersing the violent group.”
Uganda faces growing pressure from the international community and rights watchdogs to respect human rights ahead of polls scheduled for Jan. 14.
President Yoweri Museveni, who has held power since 1986, faces the strong challenge of Wine, who appeals to young people wishing to see a change
of government.
AttackinPakistan: At least seven Pakistani security men were killed when a group of militants attacked a paramilitary checkpoint early Sunday in a province rocked for years by an insurgency, a statement from Pakistan’s army said.
Officials say gunmen attacked the Frontier Corps post in the district of Harnai in Baluchistan province.
The attack on the Frontier Corps comes a day after a bomb exploded near a soccer field, killing two spectators and wounding another six in Panjgur district in southwestern Baluchistan.
Nogroup immediately claimed responsibility for either attack. Similar attacks in the past have been claimed by separatist groups in the area. Islamic militants also operate in the region.