The Vatican has released the first image of Pope Francis since he was admitted to hospital a month ago.

The photo shows the pontiff sitting in a wheelchair in front of an altar at a chapel in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he has been recovering from pneumonia.

Earlier on Sunday, in his written Angelus message, the Pope said he faced a “period of trial” as he thanked well-wishers for their prayers, and prayed for peace in “countries wounded by war”.

It marked the fifth Sunday in a row that the Pope was not present in person for his weekly blessing. The Vatican said earlier this week that an X-ray had confirmed “improvements” in his condition, but that he still needed hospital treatment.

“The Holy Father still requires hospital medical therapy, motor and respiratory physiotherapy,” it said in a statement on Saturday, adding that they were “showing further, gradual improvements”.

Pope Francis, 88, has not been seen in public since his admission to hospital on 14 February – and until Sunday, no photographs had been released.

“I join with so many brothers and sisters who are sick: fragile, at this time, like me,” the Pope said in his latest statement, released earlier in the day.

“Let us continue to pray for peace, especially in the countries wounded by war: tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

Since his arrival in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, the Pope has been treated for double pneumonia and other infections.

He has also suffered several respiratory crises, which has raised concerns about his survival.

Earlier on this month, an audio recording of Pope Francis speaking in his native Spanish was played in St Peter’s Square in Vatican City.

His voice was breathless as he thanked the Catholic faithful for their prayers

Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, is the first Pope from the Americas.

He contracted pleurisy as a young man and had a partial lung removal, which has left him particularly vulnerable to pneumonia.

As a result of his long road to recovery, there has been speculation that Pope Francis could choose to follow his predecessor Benedict XVI in resigning the papacy.

But friends and biographers close to the Pope have insisted that he has no plans to step down. And, despite his fragile health, the pontiff has continued his work from hospital.

This year is a Catholic Holy Year, with 32 million pilgrims expected to travel to Rome.

(BBC News)

Voice of America launched in 1942 with a mandate to combat Nazi and Japanese propaganda

US President Donald Trump has signed an order to strip back federally funded news organisation Voice of America, accusing it of being “anti-Trump” and “radical”.

A White House statement said the order would “ensure taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda”, and included quotes from politicians and right-wing media criticising the broadcaster.

VOA, still primarily a radio service, was set up during World War Two to counter Nazi propaganda. It says it currently reaches hundreds of millions of people globally each week.

Mike Abramowitz, VOA’s director, said he and virtually his entire staff of 1,300 people had been put on paid leave.

Abramowitz said that the order left VOA unable to carry out its “vital mission… especially critical today, when America’s adversaries, like Iran, China, and Russia, are sinking billions of dollars into creating false narratives to discredit the United States”.

The National Press Club, a leading representative group for US journalists, said the order “undermines America’s long-standing commitment to a free and independent press”.

It added: “If an entire newsroom can be sidelined overnight, what does that say about the state of press freedom?

“An entire institution is being dismantled piece by piece. This isn’t just a staffing decision – it’s a fundamental shift that endangers the future of independent journalism at VOA.”

The president’s order targets VOA’s parent company US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which also funds non-profit entities such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, which were originally set up to counter communism.

It tells managers to “reduce performance… to the minimum presence and function required by law”.

CBS, the BBC’s US news partner, said that VOA employees were notified in an email by Crystal Thomas, the USAGM human resources director.

A source told CBS that all freelance workers and international contractors were told there was now no money to pay them.

Emails obtained by CBS notified the bosses of Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that their federal grants had been terminated.

VOA and other stations under USAGM say they serve more than 400 million listeners. They are broadly equivalent to the BBC World Service, which is part-funded by the British government.

The Czech Republic’s Foreign Minister, Jan Lipavský, said he hoped the European Union could help keep Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty running in Prague.

He said he would ask European foreign ministers at a meeting on Monday to find ways to at least partially maintain the broadcaster’s operations.

Elon Musk, the billionaire and top adviser to Trump who has been overseeing sweeping cuts to the US government, has used his social media platform X to call for VOA to be shut down.

The US president also cut funding to several other federal agencies – including those responsible for preventing homelessness, and funding museums and libraries.

Trump was highly critical of VOA in his first term. He has recently appointed staunch loyalist Kari Lake to be a special adviser for the USAGM.

The president regularly states that mainstream media outlets are biased against him. He called CNN and MSNBC “corrupt” during a speech at the justice department.

Voice of America launched in 1942 with a mandate to combat Nazi and Japanese propaganda. Its first broadcast – made on a transmitter loaned to the US by the BBC – stated a modest purpose.

Gerald Ford, a former president, signed VOA’s public charter in 1976 to safeguard its editorial independence.

By 1994, the Broadcast Board of Governors, with oversight over non-military broadcasting, was established.

In 2013, a shift in legislation allowed VOA and affiliates to begin broadcasting in the US.

(BBC News)

A plane carrying former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte has arrived in the Netherlands where he is to face charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his deadly “war on drugs”.

Duterte was arrested at Manila airport on Tuesday and within hours was on a chartered jet which flew via Dubai to The Hague, where the ICC sits.

The 79-year-old could become the first Asian former head of state to go on trial at the ICC.

Duterte, who contested his extradition, led the Philippines from 2016 to 2022 and presided over a violent “war on drugs” that saw thousands of small-time drug dealers, users and others killed without trial.

The Gulfstream G550 landed in Dubai for a stopover early on Wednesday and its expected departure was delayed for several hours while Duterte received medical checks, Reuters news agency reports.

Once the plane had landed in Rotterdam, the ICC confirmed that Duterte was in its custody to face charges “of murder as a crime against humanity”.

“A hearing will be scheduled in due course for Mr Duterte’s initial appearance before the Court.”

Meanwhile the former leaders’ supporters gathered outside The Hague Penitentiary Institution protesting his arrest. Many of them waved the Philippine flag, while others mimicked Duterte’s signature fist-pumping gesture.

“We stand with Duterte,” read a banner held up by supporters.

Duterte’s main political rival, current President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, was instrumental in handing him over. Minutes after Duterte left Philippines airspace, Marcos gave a televised address saying the country was fulfilling its legal obligation.

“This is what the international community expects of us,” Marcos said.

The Duterte and Marcos families are the Philippines’ most powerful political dynasties. They joined forces to sweep the country’s last national election in 2022, but have fallen out in recent months as they pursued separate agendas.

Duterte being handed to the ICC is the latest twist in a political feud that has unfolded spectacularly in the public view.

The Duterte and Marcos families formed a formidable alliance in the 2022 elections. Against the elder Duterte’s wishes, his daughter Sara ran as Marcos Jr’s vice-president instead of seeking her father’s post.

Marcos initially refused to co-operate with the ICC investigation, but as his relationship with the Duterte family deteriorated, he changed his stance.

Vice-President Duterte said her father’s arrest amounted to “kidnapping”, claiming it violated Philippine sovereignty. She left Manila for the Netherlands on Wednesday, according to her office.

(BBC News)