International News

News from outside of Canada.

Up to 100 Christians abducted in Islamic State offensive in Syria

February 24, 2015

DOHUK, Iraq - Dozens of Assyrian Christians were abducted by Islamic State forces during a new offensive against a string of villages in northeastern Syria, aid and civil rights organizations reported.

Freezing temps, 60-mph winds, tents: Refugees struggle in Bekaa Valley

February 24, 2015

BEKAA VALLEY, Lebanon - Many Lebanese have spent as much time as possible indoors this winter, protecting themselves from this year's unusually brutal cold season.

Survey: 133 per cent increase in attacks on religion in past three years

February 23, 2015

WASHINGTON - A new report from the Liberty Institute in Plano, Texas, shows that incidents of "religious hostility" have more than doubled in the United States over the past three years.

Jesuit's kidnapping forces JRS to reassess operations in risky areas

February 23, 2015

ROME - The kidnapping of Jesuit Father Alexis Prem Kumar has made Jesuit Refugee Service reassess the way it operates in many high-risk countries, said an agency official.

'God has saved me,' says Indian Jesuit after release from Afghanistan

February 23, 2015

NEW DELHI - A Jesuit priest kidnapped in Afghanistan and held for eight months told reporters "God has saved me," but he said he did not want to discuss details of his captivity.

Italy and Vatican on guard after threat from Islamic State

February 23, 2015

ROME - The Italian government is on high alert after threats from the Islamic State called Italy “the nation signed with the blood of the cross.”

Ukrainian bishops seek to be heard over the din of rhetoric

February 20, 2015

VATICAN CITY - As the Ukrainian Catholic bishops met in a private audience with Pope Francis Feb. 20, Ukraine was marking its first Day of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes, commemorating those who died in the Euromaidan movement one year earlier.

Pope tells Ukraine's bishops not to politicize their role as pastors

February 20, 2015

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis urged Ukraine's Catholic bishops to focus on the social and human tragedies unfolding in their country and avoid politicizing their role as Church leaders.

Catholic justice leaders condemn Europe's growing racism, nationalism

February 19, 2015

OXFORD, England - Catholic leaders condemned "racism and xenophobia" in Europe and urged religious communities to speak out against a growing "nationalism of exclusion" of the type that preceded both world wars.

New York bishops put high priority on fighting moves to allow assisted suicide

February 19, 2015

ALBANY, N.Y. - As New York lawmakers began to consider a bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide, the New York State Catholic Conference launched a new website "to offer Catholics moral clarity and guidance on the church's teachings regarding end-of-life decision-making."