World News Random, Random

[ashkor87]

Two nuclear powers - India and Pakistan, staring each other down..looks very dangerous but imo it is not..the reality is probably just internal Pakistan politics..last time Pakistan invaded kargil, what happened? General Musharraf launched a coup and overthrew the civilian administration. It had nothing to do with India ..i expect a replay, with different players .Gen Munir is probably looking for a way to show that the army is THE most important force in Pakistan..if India retaliates, so much the better for his narrative. So, I don't expect a war, I expect a military coup in Pakistan. The Pakistan army is more interested in conquering their own country than any other country!

[Suliso]

Is it really for sure that Pakistan was involved in that terrorism incident in Kashmir?

[ashkor87]

Is it really for sure that Pakistan was involved in that terrorism incident in Kashmir?

Oh no question.

[ti-amie]

[skatingfan]

The blue suit thing is a bit of misinformation - there are other pictures of the mourners showing a wider shot that show multiple blue suits.

[ti-amie]

The blue suit thing is a bit of misinformation - there are other pictures of the mourners showing a wider shot that show multiple blue suits.

The question is whether they were heads of state or royalty though. There is always an official dress code for dignitaries, one that lesser mortals don't have to adhere to.

It's also reported that he refused to sit in his assigned seat and demanded to be seated in the front row.

Here's the article about how seating was arranged.

Seating plan for a pope’s funeral – it’s complicated
By Reuters

Published: April 25, 2025 at 10:56AM EDT

They may be the most powerful people on earth, but for the seating arrangement at Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday, all foreign leaders will play second fiddle to the Argentines and Italians and surrender to the whims of the French alphabet.

About 130 foreign delegations had so far expressed their desire to attend the funeral, the Vatican said on Friday, and more were expected to do so throughout the day. Those include around 50 heads of state who have been confirmed as attending, among them U.S. President Donald Trump and 10 reigning monarchs.

Apart from the VIPs, hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend the funeral in St. Peter’s Square, which starts at 10 a.m. (0800 GMT) on Saturday. Italian police have laid on one of the most complex security operations in decades.

The official delegations will sit at a section to the right of the altar at the top of the steps leading toward St. Peter’s Basilica.

Pride of place goes to Argentina, Francis’ native country, whose president, Javier Milei, will sit in the front row.

Milei, a maverick right-wing libertarian, had heaped insults on Francis while he was campaigning in 2023, calling him an “imbecile who defends social justice.” But the president shifted his tone after he took office that year.

Next comes Italy, the country that surrounds the Vatican and which agreed in 1929 to recognize its sovereignty as the world’s smallest state. It gets the second-best seats in the VIP section also because the pope is bishop of Rome and primate of the Catholic bishops of Italy.

That is when the alphabet in French – still considered the language of diplomacy – kicks in for the other delegations. The countries following Italy are ordered according to their names in French and not in their native languages.

So, it is Etats Unis and not United States, Allemagne instead of Deutschland (Germany), and Pays-Bas instead of Nederland (The Netherlands).

Royalty will take precedence. Reigning monarchs -- expected to include royalty such as the kings and queens of Spain and Belgium and Prince Albert of Monaco -- will be seated in front of other heads of state.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said on Friday that no distinction would be made between Catholic and non-Catholic royalty for the seating order.

After the royals come the remaining heads of state. Trump, who attracted criticism from Francis because of his immigration policies, will sit ahead of many other leaders because Etats Unis begins with an ‘E’.

That alphabetic logic means that Trump - currently engaged in trying to get a peace deal in the war in Ukraine - will not be sitting near Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Former U.S. President Joe Biden, who has been the target of constant criticism by Trump, is attending the funeral, but will not be part of the official U.S. delegation, a diplomatic source said. This means Biden, a lifelong Catholic, should be sitting further back, with other VIPs.

(Reporting by Philip PullellaAdditional reporting by Joshua McElweeEditing by Crispian Balmer and Frances Kerry)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/article/se ... mplicated/

[ti-amie]

There are some beautiful photographs from the WaPo.


Pope Francis’s coffin is carried during his funeral at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City on Saturday. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)



Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re leads a prayer during the pope's funeral Mass. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)


Cardinals depart at the end of the funeral Mass. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)



Francis's coffin is transported past Rome's Colosseum on Saturday. (Bernat Armangue/AP)


Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, left, presides over the entombment of Francis in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. (Vatican Media/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

[ti-amie]

Mr. Trump was seated among foreign leaders for Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday.Credit...Eric Lee/The New York Times

You can see that the dignitaries, many in their customary attire, managed to wear black.

[ashkor87]

Irrelevant but interesting fact . In our country, white is the color of mourning, not black ..we all go dressed in pure whites to attend funerals...there is also an event a few days later, when people come, all in White, and sit with the bereaved family in total silence for a few minutes..as a healing ritual.

[ponchi101]

It is so tiring that everything immediately starts revolving around Tiny.
Well, only 3 years and 9 months left to go... with luck.

[Owendonovan]

Wills wore a blue suit as well.

[ti-amie]

Unless you want to see the cardinals lining up you can stop about 44 seconds in.

[ti-amie]

Wills wore a blue suit as well.

He's not a reigning monarch, his father is.

I read that President Biden wore a very dark blue suit but I haven't seen any pictures.

[ptmcmahon]

Election night in Canada. Projections for another Liberal government - too early to say if a minority / majority. Mark Carney will be the "new" prime minister... in his first ever elected position. (I guess technically he was already PM when Trudeau stepped down.)

Not a big surprise but the key issues is basically "Trump" and "Tarrifs." back in January and February the Conservatives were projected to be way ahead.

[Owendonovan]

Election night in Canada. Projections for another Liberal government - too early to say if a minority / majority. Mark Carney will be the "new" prime minister... in his first ever elected position. (I guess technically he was already PM when Trudeau stepped down.)

Not a big surprise but the key issues is basically "Trump" and "Tarrifs." back in January and February the Conservatives were projected to be way ahead.

I think the American president has soiled the "conservative" moniker for anyone who chooses "conservative" as an identifier.