Pope’s condition remains ‘stationary’ on 27th day in hospital, Vatican says
Massimo Valicchia/NurPhoto via Getty Images
(LONDON and ROME) — Pope Francis’ condition remained “stationary” on Wednesday, with tests confirming his improvement, according to the Vatican.
A chest X-ray performed on Tuesday confirmed improvements recorded over the past few days, the Vatican press office said in its Wednesday evening update.
The pope continues to undergo high-flow oxygen therapy during the day and “noninvasive mechanical ventilation during his night rest,” the Holy See, the Vatican’s press office, said.
“This morning, after following the Spiritual Exercises in connection with the Paul VI Hall, he received the Eucharist, dedicated himself to prayer and, subsequently, to motor physiotherapy. In the afternoon, after joining the Spiritual Exercises of the Curia, he continued his prayer, rest and continued his respiratory physiotherapy,” the Vatican said.
The pope rested peacefully overnight as he began his 27th consecutive day in the hospital Wednesday morning, the Vatican said earlier in the day.
The pope’s prognosis was “lifted” on Monday, meaning he is no longer in imminent danger, but the clinical picture still remains complex.
The 88-year-old pontiff will continue “for additional days, the pharmacological medical therapy in a hospital environment” due to the “complexity of the clinical picture and the significant infectious picture presented at hospitalization,” the Vatican said.
“The improvements recorded in previous days have further consolidated, as confirmed by both blood tests and clinical objectivity and the good response to pharmacological therapy. For these reasons, the doctors decided to lift the prognosis,” the Holy See said Monday in a statement.
Francis’ doctors said there are positive signs of the pontiff’s recovery, but caution remains, according to Vatican sources.
Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia.
Thursday will mark the 12th anniversary of when Pope Francis was voted to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, who previously resigned.
(WASHINGTON) — International aid organizations are warning that humanitarian efforts in Gaza would be severely impacted if the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is shut down by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Musk said he was “in the process” of “shutting down” the agency — which oversees foreign aid, disaster relief and international development programs — and that President Donald Trump agreed with him.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Monday that he had been appointed acting director of USAID, saying the agency is “not functioning” and that it needs to be aligned with U.S. national interests.
Alex Smith, a former contractor for USAID who advised on nutrition, child health and maternal health, told ABC News that the dismantling of the agency could have a major impact on aid in Gaza.
“It’s going to be devastating,” said Smith, who left the agency last year. “You know, countries are already trying to figure out how they’re going to fill the gaps, but they just don’t have the money, and finding new donors could take years.”
Smith noted that the Trump administration said previous federal funding freezes wouldn’t affect emergency food programs, but that the USAID also provides humanitarian assistance on other fronts.
“There’s a lot more than food aid that USAID does. That’s a kind of common misconception — that all we do is just drop off big bucks and food,” he said. “It’s about fighting infectious disease, malaria, TB, HIV all over the world. You know, with the conditions in Gaza as they are, we’ve seen some polio. It’s very likely that cholera is already there and it’s going to get worse. So we used to have a lot of programs to try to combat those specific infectious diseases.”
Jesse Marks, senior advocate for the Middle East at the humanitarian organization Refugees International, told ABC News he’s worried the stoppage of aid from USAID could put the Israel-Hamas ceasefire in jeopardy.
“An aid freeze in general, but particularly for Gaza, threatens to undermine what has already been a fragile ceasefire, and the potential for phase two and phase three release of hostages,” Marks said.
“I think one of the facets of this that people are not necessarily connecting is that the humanitarian access to Gaza — which is underpinned by USAID, State Department funds — was a central feature of the bargain that underpins ceasefire,” he continued. “So, if you remove aid to Gaza, whether directly or as a second-order effect of the aid freeze, this raises the risk of a broader ceasefire collapse.”
USAID has been contributing aid to Gaza and the West Bank since at least 2021, with increased aid after the Israel-Hamas war broke out.
In November 2024, USAID announced it was providing $230 million in additional funding “to support economic recovery and development programs in the West Bank and Gaza.” It has given more than $2.1 billion in humanitarian assistance since Oct. 7, 2023.
The U.S. Office of Palestinian Affairs said funding from USAID would allow the agency’s partners to provide food assistance, emergency health care and psychosocial services, and could help with providing access to clean drinking water, hygiene products and sanitation services.
In a statement to ABC News last week, the nonprofit International Medical Corps (IMC) said it had received $68 million from USAID to set up and run two large field hospitals in Gaza so it could treat more than 33,000 civilians per month.
The spokesperson also rejected claims from a U.S. State Department official that IMC had used funding from USAID to procure or distribute condoms.
USAID was partly responsible for renewed international pressure on Israel to increase the flow of aid into Gaza.
In April 2024, USAID Administrator Samantha Power testified before Congress, stating that parts of Gaza were experiencing a famine and that conditions were “as dire as any I have seen in my career.”
Her assessment came after a March 2024 report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification that famine was “imminent” in northern Gaza and the entire population was experiencing high levels of food insecurity.
Later that day, Israeli military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told reporters that Israel was constructing a new land crossing from Israel into northern Gaza to facilitate more aid deliveries based on previous promises made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Aid organizations including Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors without Borders, and Oxfam, a group made up of 21 independent NGOs, have called on the U.S. government to halt the shutdown of USAID.
“Dismantling USAID would be a callous, destructive political power play that would have deadly consequences for millions of people living in dire humanitarian emergencies and extreme poverty,” Abby Maxman, Oxfam America president and CEO, said in a statement.
ABC News’ Katherine Faulders, Shannon Kingston, MaryAlice Parks and Will Steakin contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it’s happening right now and affecting what matters most to us. Hurricanes intensified by a warming planet and drought-fueled wildfires are destroying our communities. Rising seas and flooding are swallowing our homes. And record-breaking heat waves are reshaping our way of life.
The good news is we know how to turn the tide and avoid the worst possible outcomes. However, understanding what needs to be done can be confusing due to a constant stream of climate updates, scientific findings, and critical decisions that are shaping our future.
That’s why the ABC News Climate and Weather Unit is cutting through the noise by curating what you need to know to keep the people and places you care about safe. We are dedicated to providing clarity amid the chaos, giving you the facts and insights necessary to navigate the climate realities of today — and tomorrow.
Climate funders say they will cover US climate obligations after Paris Agreement withdrawal
On Monday, President Donald Trump announced his intention to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement, the U.N.-backed international climate treaty. Bloomberg Philanthropies announced Thursday that they, along with a coalition of climate charities, would step up and ensure that the U.S. meets its obligations under the Paris Agreement, including any financial and reporting requirements.
“While government funding remains essential to our mission, contributions like this are vital in enabling the UN Climate Change secretariat to support countries in fulfilling their commitments under the Paris Agreement and a low-emission, resilient, and safer future for everyone,” said Simon Stiell, United Nations climate change executive secretary, in a press statement.
This is the second time Trump has withdrawn the country from the Paris Agreement. During his first term, Trump justified backing out of the treaty by claiming that participating in the agreement would result in the loss of jobs and cost the U.S. trillions of dollars. In reality, in 2023, clean energy jobs grew at more than twice the rate of the overall U.S. labor market and accounted for more than 8.35 million positions, according to a Department of Energy report. In terms of spending, the U.S. has committed several billion dollars to the effort, not trillions.
Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire businessman, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and a U.N. Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions, said he also plans to continue supporting a coalition of states, cities and businesses that are working to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 61-66% below 2005 levels by 2035.
“More and more Americans have had their lives torn apart by climate-fueled disasters, like the destructive fires raging in California. At the same time, the United States is experiencing the economic benefits of clean energy, as costs have fallen and jobs have grown in both red and blue states. The American people remain determined to continue the fight against the devastating effects of climate change,” Bloomberg said.
Photo by Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images
(ROME) — Pope Francis’ prognosis was “lifted” on Monday, marking his 25th consecutive day in the hospital, according to the Vatican.
“The improvements recorded in previous days have further consolidated, as confirmed by both blood tests and clinical objectivity and the good response to pharmacological therapy. For these reasons, the doctors decided to lift the prognosis,” the Holy See, the Vatican’s press office, said in a statement Monday.
Vatican sources told ABC News that Francis’ prognosis being lifted means he’s no longer in imminent danger, but the clinical picture still remains complex.
Regardless of the improvements, the 88-year-old pontiff will continue “for additional days, the pharmacological medical therapy in a hospital environment” due to the “complexity of the clinical picture and the significant infectious picture presented at hospitalization,” the Vatican said.
Francis’ doctors said there are positive signs of the pontiff’s recovery, but caution remains, according to the Vatican sources.
The pope will move back to noninvasive mechanical ventilation and will continue an antibiotic treatment, the Vatican sources said.
On Monday morning, Francis was able to participate in spiritual exercises for Lent for the Roman curia, received the Eucharist and then “went to the Chapel of the private apartment for a moment of prayer,” the Vatican said.
He continued to participate in the spiritual exercises via a video link and spent the rest of the afternoon alternating between prayer and rest, the Vatican said.
Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia.
On Sunday, Francis released a text of his Angelus address — his weekly address — thanking the doctors and nurses who have been caring for him in the hospital.
“During my prolonged hospitalization here, I too experience the thoughtfulness of service and the tenderness of care, in particular from the doctors and health care workers, whom I thank from the bottom of my heart,” the pope said.
Thursday will mark the 12th anniversary of when Francis was voted to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, who previously resigned.
