Pope prays for Black Sea plane crash victims

Iraq's Christian minority has dealt with decades of persecution — and many are skeptical about whether a four-day visit by Pope Francis will make a difference.

With the crumbling stone walls of Mosul's Church of the Immaculate Conception behind him, Pope Francis prays for "victims of war" and makes a plea for Christians in Iraq and the Middle East to stay in their homelands.

The Roman Catholic pontiff urged the people to fight against the Mafia and other organized crime groups, accusing the criminals of "exploiting the pandemic."

The Vatican announced Wednesday it would reduce the salaries of religious at the Holy See to stave off job cuts as the coronavirus continues to hammer the Catholic Church's bottom line.

During the Angelus prayer at the end of the Palm Sunday mass in the St. Peter Basilica, Pope Francis remembers victims of violence, especially those involved in this morning's attack in Indonesia, in front of the Cathedral of Makassar.

Russia has said several areas of the Black Sea near the Crimean coast will be off limits to foreign warships, in an anticipated move that has drawn much criticism from NATO and Ukraine.

A Russian navy cruiser is set to hold live ammunition drills in the Black Sea as a US Coast Guard ship is entering the area.

Pope Francis says the loss of innocent lives in violence between Israel and Palestinians is "terrible and unacceptable" and appeals for those who have responsibility to "walk the paths of peace".

Nigeria's Air Force said one of its planes crashed in central Nigeria with the country's army chief Ibrahim Attahiru on board.

It is not the best of times for the Nigerian Armed Forces as the loss of its best hands and equipment is fast becoming unbearable as the country continues its war against insurgents and insecurity. And as we mourn the last victims, one of the questions on the mind of many Nigerian's remains; Why have two American-made Beechcraft Kingair 350 crashed just two months apart from each other? Is it really time to audit the Nigerian Air Force fleet?

British PM Boris Johnson has defended the UK navy's response to Russia firing warning shots at one of its warships in the Black Sea.

Dutch Defense Minister Ank Bijleveld-Schouten said the actions were "irresponsible" and that her country will address Russia about this. Russia denied that the jets flew too close to the ship.