Vatican & World News 03.09.2026

0:00Laudatoa Jesus Christos, Vatican and World News. In the headlines this Thursday September the 3rd, Pope Leo tells Middle East and Bishop's to bear witness to service and hope amidst conflicts. Caratastinopal seeks to expand its relief efforts for the thousands of victims of last week's flash flooding in the Himalayas and the Bishop of Beirut speaks to Vatican radio about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the south of Lebanon. In the Vatican, I'm Joseph Tullich. Pope Leo met today with members of the Conference of Latin Bishops of the Arab Regions or Chalra who are holding their annual meeting in Rome. The Pope urged the Church to confront conflict with the soil largely for the poor and by bearing witness that it is possible for different groups to live and to hope together. Devin Watkins reports. As he met on Thursday with Latin right bishops from Arab regions, Pope Leo XIV recognized

1:03that they minister in context, often marked by political, social and religious tensions. Pope Leo said the Church's leaders must share the wounds of their people, particularly when families are forced to immigrate and communities grow more fragile. In the Greek language, the Church's fruitfulness is seen in fidelity to the gospel. At the heart of society's marked by conflict and division, he said, New York communities show that it is possible to live, serve and hope together. Through her work in parishes, schools and hospitals, the Church makes the gospel tangible. Amid emergencies, he said, do not lose sight of what is essential to the Church's mission. The proclamation of the gospel, prayer, the sacraments and Christian formation. Pope Leo urged the bishops to offer special care for families and young people as they face difficulties and uncertainties. He also invited him to care for migrants who live far from their families and amid loneliness, especially in Gulf countries.

2:04Mayor communities be homes in which no one feels like a stranger, he said, defend the dignity of every person and recognize in every migrant, a brother or sister. Pope Leo XIV when on-terge the bishops to preserve communion among the churches of various rights. Their communion, he added, should lead them to engage in sincere dialogue with other Christians and Muslim communities. Wherever war has zone this trust, he said, every gesture of esteem, cooperation and respect can become a step towards reconciliation and peace. In conclusion, Pope Leo XIV invited the Latin bishops of Arab regions to make Christ present and proclaim his word in the sacraments and prayer. Be voices of truth, justice and peace, he said, Minne of Prayer, pastors close to your people, and artisans of reconciliation. I'm Devon Watkins. One of the members of the Comprehensive Latin bishops, present this morning at the audience with the Pope, was bishops' Jamal Dibas, the apostolic administrator of the diocese of Djibouti and Somalia.

3:09Speaking to Vatican radio after the audience, he highlighted how the meeting comes at a time of profound concern for the region's Christians, because of ongoing conflict and displacement, which he said are compounded by climate change and migration. The bishops, he said, come from very different realities, but share the experience of living in predominantly Muslim societies. The Pope's appeal to them, he said, was not to be afraid of their smallness and misresonated with him in a special way. I loved what he said about it. He said, and it's not about how much we are, the number. It's about being faithful to the gospel. And I think that the churches, not only in Djibouti, but also in other Arab countries, in Palestine, Israel, Syria, etc., we have a witness for our faith. And that's important. And I come from the Netherlands, and we have an experience there, because we began with 12 people who believed in Christ, and then they spread the good news all over the world. So it's not about

4:13the numbers. It's about being faithful to the gospel of the Lord. That's an important thing. And he mentioned something very important, the sacrifices of the church, including the martyrs. And he mentioned, Selonella Skarpat, a martyr in Somalia, the sisters of Charity in Yemen, and others who paid the price in order to witness the faith in those countries. So that's our mission as a Christian community, as churches, there, this witness, and keeping hope alive, also, especially in difficult circumstances. So would you, he asked you to go back and do it? When he emphasized on the importance of the mission of the church, so he encouraged us to go back and to carry with us the gospel and hope for our people. And to convey to our faith for that,

5:13a universal church in the person of the Pope himself, that he knows about what's going on, and he's close to the Christians there. That's very important for us. We know that already, but now meeting with him and hearing it directly from him, that was very, very important. That was Bishop Janal Dyebes, the Apostolic Administrator of the Dices of Djibouti and Somalia, originally from Palestine, speaking to Vatican Radio's Linda Bordoni. Each of the bishops' presence at the meeting with the Pope this morning had the opportunity to tell him about an aspect of the life of the church in the area under their jurisdiction. Among them was Bishop Cesar Essayan, the Latin-right Apostolic, the Cur of Bay Rout. He spoke to Pope Leo about the deteriorating situation in the south of Lebanon. Later, he described it to Vatican Radio. We are facing a very difficult situation in the south Lebanon, distractions everywhere, death, wounded people, displaced people, people who tried to come back to their villages, they don't

6:18find their home, they do not know where to go. And this is a situation that means that we do not know how it could end without withdrawal of Israel from the south of Lebanon. Is Israel going to withdraw or not? We do not know. We are still waiting to see the decision of the comity of dialogue between Lebanon and Israel. The second thing is that the main actor of the field, they should decide to stop the war. And for that, we do not know very well what's the goal of each one of them, what the goal of Israel, what the goal of Iran. We do not know that Hasbola want to free the Lebanese land, but we do not know something else. I do think that the choice that made our

7:20president to begin a dialogue with Israel, leaders through the United States, is a good choice because only with dialogue we can arrive to solution that could be, let's say not a very good solution, but something acceptable for now and to build on that solution for the years to come, a peace, a peace, respecting the dignity of each person in the south of Lebanon. That was Bishop Cesar Sainte, Latin-Write Apostolic Vicar of Beirut, speaking there to Olivia Binal from Vatican Radio's French Program. It has been a week since flash floods ripped through the Rasua District of Nepal. The latest figures report that more than 1,100 people have died and almost 5,000 are still missing.

8:20Caritas Nepal is continuing to provide aid on the ground. Now the organization, which is the local branch of the Catholic Church's Charter Boulam, is preparing to scale up its assistance with the aim of reaching up to 4,000 families. At the same time, the Secretary General of Caritas has urged the international community to commit to doing what is necessary to care for our common home and preventing such disasters in the future. Kelsey Gossi tells us more. Caritas Nepal has been on the ground, responding to the needs of those most affected by the flash flood on August 26th. However, heavy rain and damaged roads have made it difficult to access some of the impacted areas. Nevertheless, the organization has been able to offer ready to eat meals to kitchens in over 50 communities, emergencies shelter and essential household items to a thousand families, and sanitation hygiene kits, and solar lighting and charging facilities. The executive director of Caritas Nepal, Sister Cecilia Durega Sestra stressed how the teams

9:21are feeding displaced families, working hand in hand with local emergency partners, networks, and disaster management committees. Caritas Nepal is preparing longer term assistance as well, such as cash for work, rent assistance, debris clearance, temporary learning areas for children, and livelihood recovery. For Caritas Internationalis, the disaster in Nepal reveals a deep climate injustice. Nepal contributes less than 0.1 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet its Himalayan communities are facing increasingly dangerous climate-related risks. Sister Cecilia stressed in her message for the world a prayer for creation. Alistair Dutton, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis, pointed to the extreme heat Europe has been living with all summer, highlighting that everyone must face the climate chaos that is so evident all around us, and all of us must commit to do what is necessary to care for our common home. It is essential to draw attention to climate change because, Dutton argued, the consequences of not dealing with it will be dreadful for all of us,

10:24particularly those like the people of Nepal who have done so little to create this climate emergency. He challenged all countries who have gained from carbon-based energy systems to step up, and accept our responsibility for the chaos, in harm that we are now seeing in every corner of the globe. I am Kelsey Gussi. And finally, the Vice President of Haysie's Bishops Conference has expressed his concern over the treatment of Haitian immigrants in the United States. His statement follows the US government's decision to terminate their temporary protected status, or TPS. TPS has a measure designed to welcome and protect individuals from countries where wars, natural disasters, or seriously humanitarian crises make it impossible to return to them safely, before its cancellation that status permitted Haitian immigrants to legally remain in the United States to obtain work permits and to avoid forced deportation. Is there better to cut value of Taza's more? Is Haiti really a country today to which someone can be sent back to without concern? Reality gives us a dramatic answer, said Bishop Dumas. For the US Secretary of State,

11:27there are no extraordinary and temporary conditions in Haiti that prevent the country's citizens from returning there safely, and even if there were, terminating TPS is a matter of national interest. However, Haiti has been overrun by political instability, armed gang violence, and immense poverty for several years, with a humanitarian crisis that continues worsening. Bishop Dumas said he has written to President Donald Trump asking him to reconsider the situation of patients affected by the termination of TPS. He called the President to use every legal and humanitarian means available to prevent forced returns as long as Haiti remains in such a condition of great instability and danger. We are not asking the United States to abandon its laws, we are not asking the United States to give up border security the Bishop continued. We are asking the United States to apply its laws with humanity when human lives are at stake. In this regard, Colonel Shibli Langevah, Bishop of Likai and Haiti, along with several American bishops, have met with US senators to seek support to extend TPS for Haitian immigrants for at least three years. What do you mean we are criminals? Is instead the question that Emma has been asking

12:27herself ever since the United States administration terminated TPS, making the threat of deportation increasingly real for the 331,000 Haitians who benefit from TPS. Emma, not her real name, is a Haitian immigrant who moved to Miami several years ago and now has four children, all born in the United States and thus American citizens. She explained to Vatican Radio that the surveillance and arrests of many Haitians by ICE agents, the federal agency responsible for enforcing US immigration laws, are experienced by her entire community as a cruel hunt. You came looking for us in our homeland because you needed us to work according to your needs, and in the end we find ourselves wearing an electronic ankle monitor as if we were ordinary criminals she said. Emma explained that her children now become anxious every time she leaves the house. My children live with a constant fear that they may never see their parents again. She continued in their hearts the same terrible question keeps coming back, who will take care of us if mom or dad never comes back. I'm Isabella de Carvalho. That brings us to the end of this edition of Vatican and World News. For more on any of these stories

13:31you can go to our website at vaticannews.va and you can also catch the latest updates on our Facebook, X and Instagram pages just search Vatican news. Many thanks go to Patrita Chiprari and Anna Barthani in the studio in the Vatican. I'm Joseph Todor. Goodbye.