(Vatican Radio) Terrorists in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, attacked several different targets on Thursday morning, killing at least six people including at least one policeman. Local authorities confirm one of the attacks took place in a Starbucks cafe in the city’s downtown area, while gunmen attacked a police post nearby.Listen to Vatican Radio's full report: Local news outlets also report three other explosions in other parts of the city, in neighborhoods near the Turkish and Pakistani embassies and other government and diplomatic buildings.UN Regional Representative on Drugs and Crime for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Jeremy Douglas, told the Australian Broadcasting Company he was returning to the nearby UN building when the blasts went off. “We got out of the car and we heard a second bomb, then we heard a third, a fourth, a fifth, a sixth and then gunfire in the street – a lot of gunfire,” he said.This is the first major attack on Jakarta si...
(Vatican Radio) Terrorists in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, attacked several different targets on Thursday morning, killing at least six people including at least one policeman. Local authorities confirm one of the attacks took place in a Starbucks cafe in the city’s downtown area, while gunmen attacked a police post nearby.
Listen to Vatican Radio's full report:
Local news outlets also report three other explosions in other parts of the city, in neighborhoods near the Turkish and Pakistani embassies and other government and diplomatic buildings.
UN Regional Representative on Drugs and Crime for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Jeremy Douglas, told the Australian Broadcasting Company he was returning to the nearby UN building when the blasts went off. “We got out of the car and we heard a second bomb, then we heard a third, a fourth, a fifth, a sixth and then gunfire in the street – a lot of gunfire,” he said.
This is the first major attack on Jakarta since the 2009 Marriot and Ritz hotels bombings.
Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim country and has been in a state of high alert after threats from the Islamic State.
Pope Francis addresses the faithful at his Wednesday general audience on March 27, 2024. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Apr 19, 2024 / 10:07 am (CNA).In the latest move in Pope Francis' reform of the Vatican judiciary, the pope issued a new motu proprio on Friday on the retirement age and benefits for cardinal judges and magistrates in the Vatican's court system.The April 19 motu proprio states that Vatican magistrates will retire at the end of the judicial year in which they turn 75 and cardinal judges at the age of 80, unless Pope Francis asks them to remain in office beyond the age limit.Magistrates and judges who wish to resign from office before the retirement age can only do so with the approval of the pope.The pope also has the prerogative to dismiss magistrates unable to fulfill their duties at any time. Upon the termination of their duties, magistrates will retain the rights to assistance and welfare provided to Vatican citizens and employees.The motu proprio, wh...
Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski of Krakow announced on April 14, 2024, the decision to begin the process of beatification and canonization of Helena Agnieszka Kmiec, a young lay missionary murdered in Bolivia in 2017. / Credit: The Helena Kmiec FoundationACI Prensa Staff, Apr 19, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski of Krakow, Poland, announced the decision to begin the process of beatification and canonization of Helena Agnieszka Kmiec, a young lay missionary murdered in Bolivia in 2017.The prelate said that after the preliminary phase began in December 2022, he made the decision to officially open the process for Kmiec after having consulted the Polish Bishops' Conference and receiving the go-ahead from the Vatican's Dicastery for the Causes of Saints."With this edict I call on all those who have any document, letter, or information about the Servant of God, both positive and negative, to send them to the Metropolitan Curia of Krakow before June 30," the archbish...
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee speaks during the signing of the ELVIS Act to Protect Voice & Likeness in Age of AI event at Robert's Western World on March 21, 2024, in Nashville, Tennessee. / Credit: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for Human Artistry CampaignWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 18, 2024 / 14:15 pm (CNA).The first English-language translation of the Bible in the United States will become an "official state book" in Tennessee on July 1.Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, signed a bill on Tuesday that names the Aitken Bible and nine other texts as official state books in the Tennessee Blue Book (an official manual on the state government). This is the first time Tennessee has formally recognized any official state books.The Bible translation was published by Philadelphia printer Robert Aitken in 1782 and received an official endorsement from Congress. The American Revolution, which began in 1776, halted trade with Great Britain and cut off the supply of Bibles, which prompte...
