Easter

Hours after a brief Orthodox Easter truce expired, Ukraine and Russia returned to overnight drone warfare, with both sides trading accusations that the 32-hour pause had been violated on a massive scale. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 98 drones overnight and reported that air defence units shot down 87 of them. Officials in Ukraine said an infrastructure site in the central-eastern Dnipropetrovsk region was struck, adding that casualty details were still being established. Russia, for its part, said that “on April…

Easter Sunday will carry unusual weight at the Vatican this year, as Pope Leo XIV prepares to mark the holiest day in the Christian calendar for the first time as pontiff while war in the Middle East darkens the celebration. The US-born pope, who has become one of the conflict’s most prominent critics, is due to celebrate mass in St Peter's Square from 9.30am Irish time before thousands of worshippers. The head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics will then deliver the traditional blessing at 11am Irish time, a moment likely…

As Easter approaches, countries across Africa are ramping up plans for a weekend defined by faith, family, and heavy travel, with leaders using the moment to press safety and security messages nationwide. In Mozambique, immigration authorities expect close to 400,000 people to cross the nation’s borders during the Easter period—about 17,000 more than last year. To cope with the uptick, officials are tightening procedures and staffing to keep checkpoints moving smoothly. In Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu has arrived in…

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lankan police have arrested the country’s former intelligence chief, retired Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay, in connection with the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings that killed 279 people, including 45 foreigners, authorities said. Police said Sallay, the former head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS), was taken into custody at dawn in a suburb of Colombo in the most high-profile arrest to date in the long-running probe. “He was arrested for conspiracy and aiding and abetting the Easter Sunday attacks,” an…

This Sunday in Ethiopia we celebrated Dagmay Tensae, a form of second Easter for the Orthodox within the nation. In Tigray, within the north, when the struggle has continued since November, believers have tried to respect custom, however discover it troublesome to rejoice in such a context. With our particular correspondent in…

While Madagascar President Andry Rajoelina declared a state of health throughout the territory on Saturday, the doors to worship remained open on Easter Sunday. With a tonnage, however limited to 100 people, a condition set by the head of state. From our correspondent in Antananarivo,Inside the Reformed Church in the district…

The celebration of Easter was marked in Cameroon by the death of Cardinal Christian Tumi on Saturday, April 3. The believers were moved the day after the man of this important church for the country. as reported from Yaoundé, Polycarp EssombaIt's an Easter Sunday like no other in Yaoundé. Despite the celebration of the rebirth…

While the Central African Republic has 80% of Christians, this year the Easter weekend is celebrated gloomily with the Covid-19 pandemic and this new armed conflict launched in December 2020 by the rebels of the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC). as reported from Bangui, FLorence MoriceAt the entrance to the cathedral, mask…