Nation & world | South Central Florida Life

The motorcade of U.S. Vice President JD Vance is seen en route to Vatican, in Rome, Italy, Sunday, April 20, 2025. (Kenny Holston/Pool Photo via AP)

JD Vance meets Pope Francis on Easter Sunday after flap over migration

U.S. Vice President JD Vance has met briefly with Pope Francis on Easter Sunday as the pontiff recovers from pneumonia. Vance’s motorcade entered Vatican City through a side gate and parked near … more

By NICOLE WINFIELD | 4/20/25

Mourners carry white sacks covering the bodies of members of the Abu Al-Rous family, killed when an Israeli airstrike struck their displacement tent overnight, during their funeral in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Israeli strikes on Gaza kill more than 90 people in the last 48 hours, Palestinians say

Gaza’s Health Ministry says more than 90 people have been killed by Israeli strikes in the last 48 hours. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The dead include at … more

By WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY | 4/20/25

Cardinal Angelo Comastri presides over the Easter mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Sunday, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Vatican's Easter Mass opens without Pope Francis as he continues recovering from pneumonia

The Vatican is celebrating Easter without Pope Francis presiding. The 88-year-old pontiff continues his recovery from a near-fatal bout of double pneumonia. In his place, Cardinal Angelo Comastri, … more

By NICOLE WINFIELD | 4/20/25

Suleiman Khalil, 21, who lost his leg in a landmine explosion while harvesting olives with his friends in a field, is reflected in a mirror at his home in the village of Qaminas, east of Idlib, Syria, Wednesday April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

'I thought I'd died.' How landmines are continuing to claim lives in post-Assad Syria

Land mines and other unexploded remnants of war continue to pose a deadly threat across Syria, causing widespread casualties and long-term harm. Since the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in … more

By GHAITH ALSAYED and SALLY ABOU ALJOUD | 4/20/25

Ksenia Lutskina, a Belarusian journalist who was imprisoned in Belarus for several years and left the country after her release, poses for a photo in Berlin, Germany, on April 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

An incessant crackdown in Belarus hurls dozens of independent journalists into harsh prisons

Dozens of journalists in Belarus have been imprisoned in recent years under a crackdown by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. According to Reporters without Borders, the country of 9.5 … more

By YURAS KARMANAU | 4/20/25

Yemen's Houthi rebels report US strikes in the capital and a coastal city

Yemen's Houthi rebels say the U.S. military has launched a series of airstrikes on the capital, Sanaa, and a rebel-held coastal city. The Houthis say 13 U.S. airstrikes hit an airport and a port in … more

By SAMY MAGDY | 4/19/25

People clean debris from damaged buildings in the aftermath of an earthquake on March 28, in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo)

Aftershocks and lack of resources hinder recovery work 3 weeks after Myanmar's deadly earthquake

Basic services have yet to be restored to the areas of Myanmar worst hit by a huge earthquake three weeks ago, and emergency workers recovering bodies and clearing debris are contending with regular … more

By GRANT PECK | 4/19/25

Luiz Henrique, playing the role of Jesus Christ, carries a cross during a Way of the Cross reenactment as part of Holy Week celebrations, at the Complexo do Alemao favela in Rio de Janeiro, on Good Friday, April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

AP PHOTOS: Holy Week celebrations around the world

Christians are celebrating Holy Week with processions and reenactments in places like Jerusalem, Brazil, Nigeria, India, Mexico and Philippines. The week between Palm Sunday and Easter, known as … more

By The Associated Press | 4/19/25

FILE - President Donald Trump, right, meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office at the White House, Feb. 28, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/ Mystyslav Chernov, File)

How Trump backed away from promising to end the Russia-Ukraine war in 24 hours

During his campaign, Donald Trump said repeatedly that he would be able to end the war between Russia and Ukraine “in 24 hours” upon taking office. He has changed his tone since becoming … more

By MEG KINNARD | 4/19/25

People in Gaza were mourning their dead, including children on Thursday, after Israeli strikes killed 23 people, including a family of 10. The strike in the southern city of Khan Younis killed five children, four women and a man from the same family, all of whom suffered severe burns, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies.

Israeli strikes kill at least 17 in Gaza and Huckabee makes first appearance as US ambassador

Israeli airstrikes across Gaza have killed at least 17 people including children as the new U.S. ambassador to Israel made his first public appearance in Jerusalem. Gaza hospitals say among the dead … more

By WAFAA SHURAFA and FATMA KHALED | 4/18/25

US Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, attended Good Friday services with his wife and three children at St. Peter’s Basilica on Friday afternoon.

JD Vance visits Italy for tariff talks and attends Good Friday service at the Vatican

U.S. Vice President JD Vance is in Rome for talks on tariffs with Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni. The White House suggested a broader U.S.-Europe summit was under consideration and that President … more

By NICOLE WINFIELD | 4/18/25

This image from video animation provided by NASA in October 2022 depicts the Lucy spacecraft. (NASA via AP)

NASA's Lucy spacecraft is speeding toward another close encounter with an asteroid

NASA's Lucy spacecraft will soon swoop past a small asteroid. It will be the second asteroid encounter for Lucy, launched in 2021 on a quest that will take it to 11 space rocks. Its ultimate … more

By MARCIA DUNN | 4/18/25

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, center, and Germany's Political Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Gunter Sautter, right, attend a meeting on Ukraine and its security, in Paris Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Julien de Rosa, Pool via AP)

Rubio suggests the US will drop Ukraine-Russia peace efforts if no progress within days

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S. may be ready to “move on” from efforts for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal if there is no progress in the coming days. He spoke in Paris after a … more

By ANGELA CHARLTON | 4/18/25

This combo shows Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, left, pictured in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025 and Steve Witkoff, right, White House special envoy, pictured in Washington, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photos Stringer, Mark Schiefelbein)

Iran-US talks over Tehran's nuclear program hinge on a billionaire and a seasoned diplomat

As far as biographies go, the two men in charge of the delicate negotiations between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program couldn’t be more different. On the … more

By JON GAMBRELL and AMIR VAHDAT | 4/18/25

People gather in a protest demanding the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, during the Jewish holiday of Passover, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, April 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Protest letters from former Israeli soldiers lay bare profound rifts over the ongoing war

When nearly 1,000 Israeli Air Force veterans signed an open letter last week calling for an end to the war in Gaza, the military responded immediately, saying it would dismiss any active reservist … more

By MELANIE LIDMAN | 4/18/25

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen speaks to the press in La Libertad, El Salvador, where he arrived regarding Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran citizen who was living in Maryland and deported to El Salvador by the Trump administration, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Salvador Melendez)

Maryland Sen. Van Hollen meets with El Salvador's vice president in push for prisoner's release

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen traveled to El Salvador on Wednesday and met with the country’s vice president to push for the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man who was sent there by the … more

By YOLANDA MAGAÑA, MARY CLARE JALONICK and MATT BROWN | 4/18/25

Palestinians in the Gaza cities of Khan Younis and Jabaliya lined up in front of a water truck Wednesday, clutching containers and jerrycans, hoping to fill them with whatever water is available amid ongoing severe water scarcity across the territory.

Israeli strike kills family of 10 in Gaza as UN raises alarm over food cutoff

Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip have killed at least 23 people, including a family of 10. The United Nations meanwhile raised alarm over the mounting impact of Israel’s six-week-old blockade … more

By WAFAA SHURAFA, FATMA KHALED and LEE KEATH | 4/17/25

A U.S. man hijacked a small plane in Belize on Thursday, stabbing two passengers and a pilot, before one of the stabbed passengers fatally shot him, officials in Belize and the United States said. The plane then landed safely.

A US man hijacks a small plane in Belize and stabs people. He is fatally shot and plane lands safely

A U.S. man has been fatally shot after he hijacked a small passenger plane in Belize. That's according to officials in Belize and the U.S. After the plane carrying 14 passengers and two crew members … more

By MEGAN JANETSKY and JULIE WATSON | 4/17/25

Altar servers crowd a window to watch the passing of the Christ of the San Bernardo brotherhood during Holy Week in Seville, Spain, Wednesday April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

AP PHOTOS: Rain or shine, emotions run high at Seville's Holy Week processions in Spain

SEVILLE, Spain (AP) — With tears of emotion often flowing down their faces, tens of thousands of faithful have packed the rooftops, bridges and narrow streets of this historic city in southern … more

By EMILIO MORENATTI and GIOVANNA DELL'ORTO | 4/17/25

This image taken by Jae C. Hong. Of The Associated Press, was one of three winners in the Singles category of the Asia-Pacific and Oceania region of the the World Press Photo Award of the Year and shows Adoptee Nicole Motta, left, and her birth father, Jang Dae-chang, wipe tears after an emotional reunion at the Eastern Social Welfare Society in Seoul, Friday, May 31, 2024. The moment they hugged, Motta, adopted to the United States in 1985, didn't need DNA test results, she knew she'd come from this man. "I am a sinner for not finding you," he said. "I think I have your nose," Motta said softly. They both sobbed. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Portrait of Palestinian boy who lost both arms is World Press Photo of the year for 2025

A portrait of a young Palestinian boy who lost both arms as a result of an Israeli attack in Gaza has been named World Press Photo of the year. The photo taken by Qatar-based Palestinian photographer … more

By MIKE CORDER | 4/17/25