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ALSO READ: Earth had close shave with over 100 Vatican City, Burj Khalifa-sized asteroids in 2023: NASA's top targets unveiled He conducted the experiment aboard the space station in 2022, during his record-breaking 371-day mission. These were the first tomatoes ever grown in space or harvested on the ISS. In an interview in October this year, Rubio said that when he lost those tomatoes, "a lot of people" accused him of "probably" eating them.

By Philip Pullella

13 such space rocks flied past Earth in November alone, 16 in October, 13 in September, three in August, two in July, seven in May and 10 in April this year. Meanwhile, data with the Minor Planet Center, the internationally recognized clearinghouse for small-body position measurements, shows that 2,818 near-Earth asteroids were discovered this year, as of December 12, 2023. In all, 33,884 near-Earth asteroids have been discovered by the NASA so far.

Mary Ann Glendon is an emerita law professor at Harvard. She served as U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, 2008-09.

Pope Francis is receiving antibiotics intravenously to treat a lung inflammation and will scale back some appointments, but he doesn't have pneumonia or fever, the Vatican has said. Francis himself on Sunday revealed that he was suffering from the inflammation problem, explaining why he didn't keep his weekly window appointment to greet people in St. Peter's Square.

By Philip Pullella

By Andrea Shalal and Kanishka Singh

By Kanishka Singh and Crispian Balmer

By Philip Pullella

Pius XII knew details about the Nazi attempt to exterminate Jews in the Holocaust as early as 1942, according to a letter found in the Vatican archives that conflicts with the Holy See's official position at the time that the information it had was vague and unverified. The yellowed, typewritten letter, reproduced in Italy's Corriere della Sera on Sunday, is highly significant because it was discovered by an in-house Vatican archivist and made public with the encouragement of Holy See officials. The letter, dated Dec.

Nazis during World War II for hiding Jews, will be beatified Sunday, the first time an entire family is given one of Catholicism's highest honours. The ceremony in the family's hometown of Markowa in south-east Poland will be attended by over 30,000 people, including 80 bishops, 1,000 priests, the country's chief rabbi and an Israeli delegation. It was there, on March 24, 1944, that German police acting on a tip-off shot dead Jozef Ulma and his wife Wiktoria, who was seven months pregnant and partially gave birth during the execution. Their children, Stanislawa, Barbara, Wladyslav, Franciszek, Antoni and Maria, aged between two and eight, were killed too, along with the eight Jews the family had been hiding in the attic. The eight — Shaul Goldmann and his five children, including his daughter Lea Didner and her five-year-old daughter, and Golda Gruenfeld — were also shot, before the family farmhouse was looted and set on fire.

Pope Francis on Saturday praised Mongolia's tradition of religious freedom dating to the times of its founder, Genghis Khan, as he opened the first-ever papal visit to the Asian nation with a word of encouragement to its tiny Catholic flock. Francis met with President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh inside a traditional Mongolian ger, or round yurt, set up inside the state palace and wrote a message in the guest book that he was visiting «a country young and ancient, modern and rich of tradition,» as a pilgrim of peace. Francis is in Mongolia to minister to one of the world's newest and smallest Catholic communities — around 1,450 Mongolians are Catholic — and make a diplomatic foray into a region where the Holy See has long had troubled relations, with Russia to the north and China to the south. While Christianity has been present in the region for hundreds of years, the Catholic Church has only had a sanctioned presence in Mongolia since 1992, after the country abandoned its Soviet-allied communist government and enshrined religious freedom in its constitution. While Catholicism is tolerated and legal, foreign missionaries working here lament that the government restricts their numbers and treats the church as a nongovernmental organization — limitations that the Holy See is hoping will be lifted with a comprehensive bilateral agreement. In his remarks, Francis praised Mongolia's tradition of religious liberty, noting that such tolerance existed even during the period of the Mongol Empire's vast expansion over much of the world.

Reuters. As per these laws, certain sacraments are not accessible to certain individuals.

By Philip Pullella and Catarina Demony

wolf statue that once sat atop a pillar in central Benghazi before disappearing decades ago, found on a farm whose owner said he bought the sculpture as scrap. Authorities were alerted to the colonial-era statue after a tip off and discovered it in a farm near Benghazi belonging to Saied Mohammed Bourabida, who told them he had bought it from a metal yard because he liked the way it looked. «I remembered this statue in its position near the port from when I was young… I had a smelting workshop and when I saw it by chance at the scrap dealer's I liked its shape and the quality of work so I bought it,» he said. Bourabida, 80, kept the statue, a replica of the famous Capitoline Wolf sculpture that depicts a legendary scene of ancient Rome, in plain view under a spreading tree next to the terrace of his house. Khaled al-Aqouri, head of the tourism and antiquities department in the Benghazi police, said he was confident that Bourabida had not known that it was still public property.

By Alvise Armellini

Jane Birkin, whose funeral was graced by celebrities and live-streamed to the crowds outside Saint Roch church. Birkin, known for her successful film roles, songs and inspiration for the Hermès Birkin bag, had a significant artistic relationship with French songwriter Serge Gainsbourg. Her iconic track «Je T'aime… moi non plus» faced bans and Vatican condemnation due to its explicit lyrics. The fashion icon, recognized for her flared jeans and distinctive fringe, passed away at 76 in her Paris home last week. Celebrities like Vanessa Paradis, Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Huppert and Charlotte Rampling paid their respects at the funeral. French First Lady Brigitte Macron and Birkin's daughters, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Lou Doillon, also attended. The emotional gathering witnessed heartfelt speeches from Gainsbourg and Doillon, who expressed their love and gratitude for their extraordinary mother. The square in front of the church was adorned with flowers, showcasing the deep affection France holds for Birkin. Banners reading «Jane Forever» and «Thank you Jane Birkin» adorned the scene as her songs resonated through the crowd. Emotions ran high as well-wishers paid tribute to the beloved star. Marie-Pierre Frapart, 63, shared her sentiments, stating, «I came to pay tribute to our little Englishwoman», to AFP.

The Vatican prosecutor has given his closing arguments in the Vatican's big financial trial

Ukrainian and Russian troops battled in eastern regions on Thursday as Kyiv tried to push back occupying forces.

Mourners poured into St. Peter’s Square early Thursday for the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, hoping to pay final respects to the German theologian who made history by retiring and participate in a rare requiem Mass for a dead pope presided over by a living one.

Beijing has slammed the recent decisions of 12 countries requiring passengers flying in from China to have a negative Covid test 48 hours before thier flight.