Pope Francis to be discharged from hospital on Sunday, Vatican says
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(ROME) — Pope Francis will be discharged from the hospital on Sunday and return to his residence at the Vatican, his doctors announced at a press conference Saturday. The pope was in the hospital for 37 days.
The pope, 88, has been in stable condition for the past two weeks, according to the Vatican.
The pope will appear at 12 p.m. local time, 7 a.m. ET, from the window of the hospital on Sunday, to greet and bless the people before leaving the hospital, the Vatican said.
“Pope Francis intends to appear from the Policlinico Agostino Gemelli in Rome for a greeting and a blessing at the end of tomorrow’s Angelus [noontime prayer]. Papal text will be distributed in written form as in recent weeks,” the Vatican said.
The pope will be recovering for two months at his Vatican residence, according to a spokesperson for the Vatican.
Pope Francis will have to continue his physiotherapy from his residence.
“The pope is getting better so that in brief time he can resume his normal activities. He has always continued to work but we recommend that he takes the adequate time to rest and convalescence. So he cant meet large groups of people,” Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said.
It will take some time for the pope’s voice to return to normal as he continues to recover, Bruni said.
“When you have a bilateral pneumonia … and your lungs have been damaged, … muscles affected … one of the first thing that happens is you lose your voice and like for all patients, young and old … it will take some time for his voice to return to normal. We have already seen important improvements,” Bruni said.
The pope will need oxygen at his residence and the Vatican has 24-hour health support
On Friday, the Vatican said the pope’s condition remained stable as he continued to have small improvements in terms of breathing and motor skills.
“At night he no longer uses mechanical ventilation with a mask but high-flow oxygenation with nasal cannulas and during the day he uses less high-flow oxygenation,” the Vatican said Friday.
“The Pope’s days are spent doing physiotherapy, prayer and a little work,” the Vatican said Saturday.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(LONDON) — A fire burning onboard two ships that collided Monday in the North Sea appeared in aerial footage to have been largely put out, although a shipping official told BBC News it would be “premature” to say the fire on the tanker had been extinguished.
A Portuguese container ship collided with a U.S.-flagged oil tanker while the tanker was anchored in the North Sea, on the eastern coast of England, with both ships catching on fire, officials said Monday.
“There will be an investigation,” said Martyn Boyers, chief executive of the Port of Grimsby. “With all the technology that these vessels have, there’s no way it should have happened.”
The U.S. ship was identified as the Stena Immaculate, while the Portuguese-flagged container ship was identified as the Solong. Both ships sustained significant damage and were abandoned by their crews.
Thirty-six people between the two ships were safely brought to shore, with one person transported to a hospital, the U.K. coast guard said.
One of the Solong’s crew members remains missing in the wake of the collision, while the other 13 were brought safely to shore, according to Ernst Russ, the manager of the container vessel.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti, Mark Osborne and Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.
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(LONDON) — Israel has resumed “focused ground operations” in the “center of the Gaza Strip” over the past 24 hours, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Israeli forces have also taken control and “re-expanded their control to the center of the Netzarim” corridor — the line that separates northern Gaza from the south — an IDF spokesperson said.
As a part of the terms of the ceasefire deal that went into effect on Jan. 19, Israeli forces agreed to withdraw troops on the ground in Gaza to a buffer zone they carved out along the perimeter of Gaza, and troops remained in the Philadelphi corridor – the 8-mile-long border between Gaza and Egypt.
During phase one of the ceasefire deal, Israel withdrew completely from the Netzarim corridor.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned the residents of Gaza that “the evacuation of the population from the battle zones” in Gaza will “begin again soon,” in a video message in Hebrew on Wednesday.
Katz encouraged Gaza residents to go to “other places in the world for those who wish.”
“Take the advice of the U.S. President. Return the hostages and eliminate Hamas, and other options will open up for you — including going to other places in the world for those who wish,” Katz said.
Last month, President Donald Trump called for the forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, drawing wide international criticism and accusations from allies and the United Nations. He has since said that Palestinians should want to leave voluntarily due to the destruction.
Residents of Gaza are currently unable to leave on their own because the border crossing into Egypt is closed.
Israel’s current plan is to make Gaza unlivable, re-establish those so-called “humanitarian zones,” concentrate Palestinians in those bubbles or islands and from there offer voluntary transfer out of Gaza, retired Brig. Gen. Amir Avivi, a security hawk who continues to advise the military and defense ministry, told ABC News.
Avivi stressed leaving would be voluntary. They would be loaded on buses and sent through the Kerem Shalom crossing either to Ashdod port, or to an airport near Eilat.
Prior to resuming ground operations, an Israeli official told ABC News that its renewed campaign of strikes on the Gaza Strip would continue until all remaining hostages are released.
Palestinian health officials said that at least 436 people have been killed — including more than 130 children, according to UNICEF figures — since Israel renewed its bombardment of the coastal territory overnight Tuesday, marking the collapse of a ceasefire with Hamas that began in January. Another 678 people have been wounded, Palestinian officials said.
On Tuesday, an Israeli official told ABC News of Hamas, “They got hammered last night and they’re going to continue to be hammered until we get the hostages out.”
The official described the Israel Defense Forces’ renewed attacks against Hamas in Gaza as a “different form of negotiating,” and said Israel had “not closed the door” to talks resuming via mediators if Hamas is willing to accept further hostage-prisoner swaps.
An Israeli official told ABC News on Tuesday that the offensive will continue “as long as necessary,” and will “expand beyond air strikes.”
Far-right Israeli Minister Ben Gvir and his party have rejoined Netanyahu’s coalition in the Knesset, after leaving when the ceasefire went into effect earlier this year.
Gvir has extreme views and wants Netanyahu to go even further in Gaza. There is a vote on Israel’s budget at the end of March.
If Netanyahu’s coalition fails to pass that budget, his government falls, according to Israeli law.
Wednesday brought fresh strikes in Gaza. The IDF said it attacked what it called “a Hamas military site in northern Gaza where preparations were being made to fire projectiles at Israeli territory.”
The Israeli navy also “struck several vessels in the coastal area of the Gaza Strip,” which the IDF said were slated for use by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza said Wednesday that one foreign staffer working for the United Nations was killed by an Israeli strike in central Gaza, with five others suffering “severe” injuries. The wounded were taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, the ministry said.
The IDF denied involvement. “Contrary to reports, the IDF did not strike a UN compound in Deir el Balah,” it said in a statement.
Israel’s renewed campaign in Gaza marked the end of nearly two months of relative quiet in the region, which has been devastated by intense fighting since October 2023. The ceasefire saw 33 Israeli hostages released from Gaza in return for the release of nearly 1,800 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.
Fifty-nine hostages are believed to remain in Gaza — 24 of whom are presumed to be alive. Edan Alexander is the last American-Israeli hostage still thought to be alive.
Several members of Hamas’ administrative and civil wings were killed in the renewed strikes. They included Deputy Minister of the Interior Maj. Gen. Mahmoud Abu Tuffah and Deputy Minister of Justice Omar al-Hatta.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that his country would act against Hamas “with increasing intensity.”
“From now on, negotiations will only take place under fire,” he said in a statement. “Hamas has already felt the presence of our force in the last 24 hours and I want to assure you: This is just the beginning.”
“The military strike on Hamas and the release of our hostages are not contradictory goals — they are goals that are intertwined,” Netanyahu said.
The renewed offensive prompted major protests in Israel, including from the families of those still being held hostage in Gaza.
“The greatest fear of the families, the kidnapped and the citizens of Israel has come true,” the Hostage Families’ Forum said in a statement issued on Tuesday. “The Israeli government has chosen to give up on the kidnapped.”
ABC News’ Guy Davies, Jordana Miller, Diaa Ostaz, Samy Zyara, Dana Savir and Victoria Beaule contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Despite President Donald Trump’s push for the forcible displacement of Palestinians from Gaza — a move that, if carried out, would be a violation of international law that some experts and U.S. allies have called ethnic cleansing — he is facing significant pushback from allies and states in the region.
There is “zero possibility” that Palestinians will be forcibly displaced from Gaza and into Jordan and Egypt, one expert told ABC News.
“I see no scenario where this happens,” Brian Katulis, a senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy at the Middle East Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, told ABC News. “This is their home. They’ve endured so much to stay in their home, even if their home — literal homes, family homes — have been destroyed.”
“It’s a model that just won’t work in today’s Middle East,” Katulis said, referring to the forced displacement of Palestinians.
“The risk is that [this] comes at a very uncertain time with the ceasefire and hostage release deal on thin ice, and it actually serves to distract from the important work of trying to keep that process moving forward — to get hostages released and much-needed aid into the people … and to actually try to move forward to something that is realistic,” Katulis said.
Trump at one point threatened to withdraw aid to Egypt and Jordan if they didn’t agree to take in Palestinians, though less than 24 hours later, he said, “I don’t have to threaten that, I don’t think. I think we’re above that.”
“The point of this is to ostensibly force Egypt and Jordan to accept all of the Palestinians currently living in the Gaza Strip, so they can engage, so the U.S. can annex the territory. I think it’s safe to say it’s a non-starter for the Saudis,” Daniel Drezner, a professor of international politics at Tufts University’s Fletcher School, told ABC News.
“The Jordanians, in particular, need the money. They’re not oil rich, and same with Egypt, but in some ways the expectation would be that if Trump actually threatened to cut them off, they would likely turn first to Saudi Arabia and the Emiratis,” Drezner said.
Arab nations quickly rejected Trump’s proposal to forcibly displace Palestinians and relocate them in neighboring states, with several calling it a hard line.
“The Foreign Ministry affirms that Saudi Arabia’s position on the establishment of a Palestinian state is firm and unwavering. HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister clearly and unequivocally reaffirmed this stance,” Saudi Arabia said last week, just hours after Trump called for the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.
As much as a bind Jordan is in, it is unlikely that it would accept anything along the lines of what Trump proposed, Drezner said, adding the proposal is worse than losing the $1.5 billion in annual aid that it receives from the U.S.
“The question is the extent to which the Saudis are willing to bankroll both the Jordanians and the Egyptians,” Drezner said.
“Pay attention to how the Gulf states are reacting to all this, because they’re the ones that are simultaneously most likely to be able to resist Trump’s pressures, and also it will send a regional signal to Egypt and Jordan as to what their options are,” Drezner said.
After Trump’s comments, Egypt expressed its support for the legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, calling for the need for a two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.
As Trump continued to double down on forcing out the Palestinians, Egyptian President Abdelfatah El Sisi announced he will indefinitely postpone his plan to visit Trump at the White House. According to Saudi-owned Al Arabiya News, Sisi said he won’t attend any White House talks if the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza is on the agenda.
“They’re probably trying to figure out how do they reposition themselves in light of Trump’s incendiary remarks, because they come directly at odds with Egypt’s own positions on this issue and its national security interests. And I don’t think they want to be put in any sort of position to actually directly challenge Trump right now until they assess,” Katulis said.
“[Egypt]’s security aid from the U.S. is part of a package that came out of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty. And if Trump wants to play games with that, he’s actually going to undercut a lot of America’s long-standing traditional security relationships in the region,” Katulis said.
Egypt also announced it plans to host a meeting with Arab states in Cairo later this month where they will discuss a counterproposal.
After meeting with Trump, King Abdullah of Jordan said in a statement he “reiterated Jordan’s steadfast position against the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. This is the unified Arab position. Rebuilding Gaza without displacing the Palestinians and addressing the dire humanitarian situation should be the priority for all.”
Trump appeared to walk back his threat of withdrawing aid after his meeting this week with King Abdullah resulted in the news that Jordan would take in 2,000 sick Palestinian children for treatment.
“This is a replay of what we’ve seen with regard to threatening Canada and Mexico [with tariffs] — it’s the shining orb strategy. It turns out if you offer Trump like a pretty gaudy but not terribly significant concession, he’ll back down,” Drezner said.
“Jordan can never agree to this — to Trump’s proposal — that would be the end of the regime. And that’s the fundamental thing that I assume someone must have told Donald Trump,” Drezner said.
In addition to opposing the forced displacement of Palestinians, Jordan and Egypt also have strains on their economies and taking in millions of refugees could potentially produce more economic and security challenges.
For the last 20 years, Jordan has faced an influx of refugees from Iraq and Syria, which has strained their economy and their social fabric, according to Katulis.
Egypt’s economy has also faced strains, with the Egyptian pound being depreciated several times in recent years. According to the World Food Programme, from January 2016 to January 2025, the Egyptian pound was devalued by 84.5% relative to the U.S. dollar — a move that governments use to increase its competitiveness or trade balance. And the U.S. dollar appreciated by 543.8% relative to the Egyptian pound during that same time period, based on the official exchange rate, according to the World Food Programme.
Taking in all Palestinians living in Gaza could also pull other countries into a confrontation with Israel, Drezner noted.
“There is no scenario whereby the Palestinians that are displaced are not going to want to return. Essentially, you’re introducing the possibility of violent non-state actors to operate within your territory,” Drezner said.
Other international powers
While Egypt and Jordan are most likely to look to Gulf states for alternate sources of aid, other international actors could also fill a gap created by the U.S. if Trump follows through on his threats.
“I’m not sure Russia is really in all that strong a position, particularly in the Middle East, since they lost their last port [when the regime fell in Syria] and we just saw what happened to Bashar Al Assad. I’m not sure that [Vladimir Putin]’s necessarily a reliable benefactor,” Drezner said.
“It would make much more sense to make a pivot towards China, in no small part because, among other things, China actually has reasons to want to be involved in the region, given their various energy demands,” Drezner said.
But, Jordan and Egypt rely on military supplies from the U.S. and the West.
“The longer-term issue is that you can argue that the militaries in both Jordan and Egypt are a little bit stuck in that they rely primarily on U.S. weaponry. So to engage in a radical pivot means that in some ways you’re also weakening your own coercive apparatus at the same time,” Drezner said.
It would take time before the militaries would be prepared to use weaponry from a different source, and weapons from another source would likely also be incompatible with their existing military stock, according to Drezner.
“It would be hard to pivot to either Russia or China as your primary arms manufacturer,” Drezner said.
