A Lebanese nun’s request to pray for Hezbollah fighters highlights schisms over the group’s weapons

BEIRUT — The nun stood in front of a group of young students at a Lebanese Christian school and asked them to pray for the “men of the resistance” in southern Lebanon who she said were defending the country. The men to whom nun Maya Ziadeh was referring are members of the Lebanese Shiite militant … Read more

Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war’s toll on Palestinian children

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza — An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned. One toddler died from a brain injury caused by an Israeli strike that fractured his skull. His cousin, … Read more

Pope appears in better health, praises Israeli, Arab dads who lost kids in conflict

VATICAN CITY — VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis appeared in better health on Wednesday, walking into the Vatican audience hall on his own with a cane for his weekly general audience and delivering his prepared text with a clear voice. The encounter was Francis’ first public event since Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s … Read more

Israel and Hamas dig in as international pressure builds for a cease-fire in Gaza

RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Hamas has rejected the latest proposal put forward by international mediators for a cease-fire and hostage release, and Israel has blasted a U.N. Security Council resolution that called for both without linking them. As the war in Gaza grinds through a sixth month, each side has publicly insisted that its own … Read more

Moscow theater shooting fans flames of a disinformation war

TALLINN, Estonia — Flames were still leaping from the Moscow concert hall besieged by gunmen when Russian officials began suggesting who was really to blame. They presented no evidence, only aspersions and suspicion and counterfactual speculation, but in Russia’s eyes the culprit was clear: Ukraine. The allegations that Ukraine, now in its third year of … Read more

Jerusalem marks festive holiday of Purim in shadow of war

JERUSALEM — Tens of thousands of people celebrated the Jewish holiday of Purim on Monday, though the traditionally boisterous celebrations were muted by the Israel-Hamas war. Although many cities across Israel decided to cancel their Purim celebrations due to the ongoing conflict, Jerusalem held a traditional Purim parade for the first time in 42 years, … Read more

The Latest | Aid groups describe an ‘unimaginable’ situation after visiting a packed Gaza hospital

Aid groups that visited a packed Gaza hospital described an “unimaginable” situation in which large open wounds were left untreated. An emergency medical team organized by three aid groups spent two weeks carrying out surgeries and other care at the European Gaza Hospital near Khan Younis. The southern city has seen heavy fighting between Israeli … Read more

On the anniversary of the 1976 military coup, Argentines push back against leaders revising history

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — As Argentina on Sunday marked the most traumatic date in its modern history — the 1976 military coup that ushered in a brutal dictatorship — President Javier Milei posted a startling video that demanded justice. Not for those who suffered repression under the junta, but for those victims of leftist guerrillas … Read more

Concert hall attack dents Putin’s tough image. He tries to use it to rally support for Ukraine war

A week ago, President Vladimir Putin swaggered triumphantly onstage at a post-election event surrounded by young people in T-shirts reading “Putin — Russia — Victory,” and he confidently shrugged off Western criticism of the vote as neither free nor fair. This weekend, a very different Vladimir Putin addressed a nation shocked by a massacre at … Read more

Israeli airstrike in northeastern Lebanon wounds 3, local official says

BEIRUT — An Israeli airstrike deep in northeastern Lebanon early Sunday wounded at least three people, a local official said. The airstrike near the city of Baalbek, a stronghold of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group, was the latest to hit the area in recent weeks. The strike occurred a few minutes after midnight and wounded three … Read more