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Greece legalizes same-sex marriage

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Greece has become the first Christian Orthodox-majority country to legalise same-sex marriage.

Same-sex couples will now also be legally allowed to adopt children after Thursday’s 176-76 vote in parliament.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the new law would “boldly abolish a serious inequality”.

But it has divided the country, with fierce resistance led by the powerful Orthodox Church. Its supporters held a protest rally in Athens.

Many displayed banners, held crosses, read prayers and sang passages from the Bible in the capital’s Syntagma Square.

The head of the Orthodox Church, Archbishop Ieronymos, said the measure would “corrupt the homeland’s social cohesion”.

The bill needed a simple majority to pass through the 300-member parliament.

Mr Mitsotakis had championed the bill but required the support of opposition parties to get it over the line, with dozens of MPs from his centre-right governing party opposed.

“People who have been invisible will finally be made visible around us, and with them, many children will finally find their rightful place,” the prime minister told parliament during a debate ahead of the vote.

“The reform makes the lives of several of our fellow citizens better, without taking away anything from the lives of the many.”

The vote has been welcomed by LGBTQ organisations in Greece.

“This is a historic moment,” Stella Belia, the head of same-sex parents’ group Rainbow Families, told Reuters news agency. “This is a day of joy.”

Fifteen of the European Union’s 27 members have already legalised same-sex marriage. It is permitted in 35 countries worldwide.

Greece has until now lagged behind some of its European neighbours, largely because of opposition from the Church.

It is the first country in south-eastern Europe to have marriage equality.

(BBC News)

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South Korean actress Kim Sae-ron found dead at home

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South Korean actress Kim Sae-ron has been found dead at her home, a police official with knowledge of the case said on Sunday.

Kim, 24, was one of most promising actresses in South Korea, but her career took a hit after a drunk driving incident in 2022.

A friend who was going to meet Kim visited her home and discovered her and called the police, Yonhap News Agency said.

Police found no foul play, according to Yonhap.

The police official said police are investigating the cause of death but did not provide further details.

Source: Reuters

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18 killed in Delhi Railway Station crowd crush

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At least 18 people, including ten women and three children, were killed in a tragic crowd crush at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday night. 

The incident occurred around 8 PM local time as thousands of Hindu pilgrims gathered to board trains heading to Prayagraj city for the annual Mahakumbh Mela religious festival, located 624 kilometers southeast of the capital.

The crush took place on two platforms as massive crowds surged to catch trains to the festival. 

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Pope Francis hospitalized at Gemelli for bronchitis

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Pope Francis has been admitted to Rome’s Agostino Gemelli Hospital due to worsening bronchitis and has begun pharmacological treatment.

The Vatican confirmed his condition is stable, with a slight fever.

Several upcoming Jubilee events have been adjusted, with Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça presiding over Sunday’s Mass.

The pope has been suffering from bronchitis for more than a week.

Francis will not take part in a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Sunday, the Vatican said later, adding that a planned public audience on Saturday and a visit on Monday to Rome’s famed Cinecitta film studios were cancelled.

Francis, who has been pontiff since 2013, has had influenza and other health problems several times over the past two years. As a young adult he developed a case of pleurisy and had part of one of his lungs removed, and in recent times he has been prone to lung infections.

Earlier this month, Francis told pilgrims at a weekly audience that he was suffering from a “strong cold,” which the Vatican later described as bronchitis.

The pope held several meetings on Friday before going to hospital. One was with Mark Thompson, CEO of the CNN news channel. The pope was “mentally alert but struggling to speak for extended periods due to breathing difficulties,” CNN later reported.

The pope also held meetings with Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico, senior Vatican official Cardinal Luis Tagle and with a Catholic philanthropy group that is based in Puerto Rico.

Video of the pope’s meeting with Fico showed Francis sitting at a desk in his Vatican residence, smiling, and speaking in a soft tone.

Francis has been suffering with respiratory issues since mid-December. He begged off reading statements at several of his public events in January and February, attending the occasions but asking aides to read his prepared remarks.

The pope also had two falls recently at his Vatican residence, bruising his chin in December and injuring his arm in January.

Despite his periodic health issues and reduced mobility, Francis has kept up a busy schedule, including foreign travel. In September he completed a 12-day tour across Southeast Asia and Oceania, the longest of his papacy.

Rome’s Gemelli hospital, the largest in the city, has a special suite for treating popes. Francis spent nine days there in June 2023, when he had surgery to repair an abdominal hernia.

Source: Vatican News

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