Pope Francis briefed on world, church matters on 24th consecutive day in hospital: Vatican
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(ROME and LONDON) — Pope Francis on Sunday spent his 24th consecutive day in the hospital receiving therapy and getting an update on world and church affairs, the Vatican’s press office said in a brief statement.
“The night was quiet, the pope is resting,” the Holy See said Sunday morning.
The Vatican said Sunday night that the pope’s condition remains “stable.” But his “overall situation remains complex, prompting doctors to maintain a guarded prognosis.”
The pope took part in mass Sunday morning in the chapel in his 10th-floor apartment in Gemelli hospital, the Vatican said. On Sunday evening, the pope watched live coverage of the first day of Spiritual Exercises for Lent for the Roman curia held in the Paul VI Audience Hall in the Vatican.
The Vatican said Pope Francis also continued his treatment Sunday and underwent motor and respiratory physiotherapy.
“His ventilation continues to switch from the day use of high-flow to anti-invasive mechanical ventilation at night,” according to the Vatican statement.
The Vatican’s secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the substitute for general affairs of the secretary of state, Archbishop Penna Parra, visited the Pope in the hospital to update him on church and world matters on Sunday, according to the Vatican.
Officials with the Catholic Church, which the pope has led since 2013, said on Saturday that the 88-year-old pontiff had demonstrated a good response to therapy.
“The doctors, hoping to record these initial improvements in the coming days, are prudently keeping the prognosis as still guarded,” the Vatican said.
Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia.
Earlier Sunday, the pope released the text of his Angelus address, or weekly address, thanking the doctors and nurses caring for him. He also prayed for the many people around the world who are enduring illness, according to the Vatican.
“During my prolonged hospitalization here,” the pope said, “I too experience the thoughtfulness of service and the tenderness of care, in particular from the doctors and healthcare workers, whom I thank from the bottom of my heart.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called on European nations to “step up” to help secure a lasting peace in Ukraine, committing for the first time to deploying British soldiers to the country to support any deal agreed with Russia.
“We are facing a once-in-a-generation moment for the collective security of our continent,” Starmer wrote in an op-ed for The Telegraph published on Sunday. “This is not only a question about the future of Ukraine — it is existential for Europe as a whole.”
“The U.K. is ready to play a leading role in accelerating work on security guarantees for Ukraine,” the prime minister wrote, noting the country’s commitment to spending nearly $4 billion to support Kyiv’s forces until at least 2030.
“But it also means being ready and willing to contribute to security guarantees to Ukraine by putting our own troops on the ground if necessary,” Starmer continued.
“I do not say that lightly,” he added. “I feel very deeply the responsibility that comes with potentially putting British servicemen and women in harm’s way. But any role in helping to guarantee Ukraine’s security is helping to guarantee the security of our continent and the security of this country.”
Starmer’s commitment makes him one of few NATO leaders to have suggested putting allied boots on the ground inside Ukraine to support any future peace deal. French President Emmanuel Macron has previously been at the forefront of such proposals, with Baltic states including Estonia and Lithuania also among those expressing willingness.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has consistently concrete security guarantees from Western partners are a vital part of any peace deal with Russia, and a necessary deterrent of renewed aggression from Moscow. Allies have been cool on — or outright opposed to — Ukraine’s ambition for rapid NATO accession and subsequent protection under the bloc’s Article 5 collective defense clause.
The offer of British troops comes after a turbulent week in NATO-Ukraine relations, with President Donald Trump unilaterally announcing the beginning of direct peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his top officials making clear the limits of U.S. backing for Kyiv.
In the run up to last weekend’s Munich Security Conference in southern Germany, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Ukraine will not be offered NATO membership in the near future, that Kyiv will not be able to liberate all occupied territory and that American troops will not be sent to the country as part of any peace deal.
Hegseth and Vice President JD Vance also hit out at European allies for doing too little to support Ukraine, contain Russia and bolster their own military readiness. The continent must “step up in a big way,” Vance said, while also rattling European allies by claiming they have failed to address issues of migration and free speech.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has continued its push for a deal with Ukraine to secure access to some $500 billion worth of rare earth metals. Zelenskyy refused to approve a draft of the agreement this weekend, telling the Associated Press that the deal “is not ready to protect us, our interest.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio flew to Saudi Arabia on Monday — where he will be joined by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff — for the expected beginning of talks with top Russian officials.
In a Sunday interview with Fox News, Witkoff said the U.S. delegation will “be having meetings at the direction of the president. And, hopefully, we’ll make some really good progress with regard to Russia-Ukraine.”
Pushed on whether Kyiv will be pressured into specific concessions, Witkoff responded, “I’m not dismissive of the details. They’re important. But I think the beginning here is trust-building.”
“It’s getting everything to understand that this war does not continue, that it should end,” he added. “That’s what the president has directed us to do, to negotiate a proper ending of this war. No more death.”
The mission to Riyadh comes days after Trump said he spoke with Putin over the phone about starting negotiations, adding he expected an eventual in-person meeting with the Russian leader in Saudi Arabia.
It remains unclear whether Ukraine will be involved in the negotiations. Kyiv and its European allies have urged the White House to facilitate roles for Ukrainian and European leaders in the talks.
Zelenskyy, meanwhile, flew to the neighboring United Arab Emirates for an official visit. The nation has played a prominent role in Kyiv-Moscow prisoner exchange talks during the war.
“Our top priority is bringing even more of our people home from captivity,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media. “We will also focus on investments and economic partnership, as well as a large-scale humanitarian program.”
The president’s office told ABC News that Zelenskyy will travel to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for a pre-planned bilateral visit.
Zelenskyy told NBC News on Sunday that his nation will “never accept any decisions between the United States and Russia” made regarding Ukraine’s future without Kyiv’s participation.
Fierce fighting and long-long attacks continue as Kyiv and Moscow prepare for the revival of talks. On Sunday night, Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 147 drones into the country, 83 of which were downed and 59 jammed.
Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said it shot down 90 Ukrainian drones.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Selina Wang contributed to this report.
(ROME) — Pope Francis “rested well” overnight, his 17th night in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, the Vatican said on Monday.
“The pope rested well all night,” the Holy See, the Vatican’s press office, said in a brief statement.
The pope’s clinical condition had on Sunday remained “stable,” the church said. Vatican sources told ABC News on Sunday that the pope had eaten breakfast with coffee and continued his treatment. He read the daily newspapers, as usual, the sources said.
Francis, who has led the Catholic Church since 2013, was admitted to Gemelli on Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia.
The 88-year-old pontiff had been in stable condition on Saturday, church officials said, following a bronchospasm attack on Friday.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Andrew Tate (left) and his brother Tristan Tate are pictured inside The Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania, on December 10, 2024. (Photo by DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP v
(LONDON) — Controversial influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate have landed in Florida, after Romanian officials announced that court restrictions prohibiting them from leaving Romania while awaiting trial were lifted.
The pair were traveling aboard a private jet after being allowed to leave Romania, according to a source close to the brothers.
Their spokesperson shared a live feed of the plane arriving in Fort Lauderdale late Thursday morning.
The charges against the Tates remain in force, and they will be expected to return to Romania for court appearances, according to a statement from Romania’s Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism, or DIICOT.
The brothers had been confined to Romania since late 2022 when they were arrested on allegations of human trafficking, sexual abuse, money laundering and forming an organized criminal group.
They were charged in 2023 and have denied the allegations.
The Tates’ departure follows reports that Trump administration officials had lobbied Romania to lift a travel ban on them while they are awaiting trial.
A lawyer for an American woman who is one of the key alleged victims in the Romanian criminal case against Andrew Tate condemned the Trump administration after he was allowed to leave Romania.
“It seems clear the U.S. intervened in Romania to assist the Tate brothers who are being prosecuted for sex trafficking over 35 women including minors,” Dani Pinter, senior vice president at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, said in a statement. “This is a slap in the face to all the victims of the Tate brothers especially the U.S. victim who is not being protected by her country.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said his office had no involvement in the case and found out through the media that the brothers were traveling to Florida.
“But the reality is, no, Florida is not a place where you’re welcome with that type of conduct in the air,” he said when asked by a reporter at an unrelated press conference on Thursday if Andrew Tate is welcome in Florida.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
