Two suspected Ugandan rebels killed in Kampala explosion
The blast on Tuesday took place in the upscale suburb of Munyonyo, outside the Munyonyo Martyrs' Shrine, where Ugandans were assembling to commemorate 19th-century Christians executed for their faith. No civilian injuries were reported.
'A counterterrorism unit this morning intercepted and neutralised two armed terrorists in Munyonyo,' said army spokesman Chris Magezi on X. He confirmed one of the assailants was a female suicide bomber 'laden with powerful explosives'.
Footage broadcast by NBS Television, an independent outlet, showed a destroyed motorbike and debris scattered across the road. Police Chief Abas Byakagaba told NBS the explosion occurred while 'two people were on a motorcycle,' adding: 'The good thing, though, is that there were no people nearby who were injured.'
There has been no immediate claim of responsibility.
While Ugandan authorities are still piecing together the events, Magezi suggested the suspects were linked to the ADF, a rebel group that originated in Uganda in the 1990s but later relocated to eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The ADF has pledged allegiance to ISIL (ISIS) and was behind a spate of deadly bombings in Uganda in 2021.
The group has been accused by the United Nations of widespread atrocities, including the killing of thousands of civilians in the region.
Martyrs' Day is one of Uganda's most significant religious holidays, drawing thousands of pilgrims annually. Security forces have increased patrols across the capital in the aftermath of the incident.
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Chicago Tribune
3 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Column: Gathering of Marmion Class of 1965 grads makes memories come alive
Three years ago, I took a walk down memory lane in this space, and invited about three generations of men to travel with me to remember the old Marmion Academy Lake Street Campus in Aurora. The all-boys Catholic high school, then known as Marmion Military Academy, operated on the corner of North Lake Street and West Illinois Avenue from 1933 until 1971, when it merged with the residential campus on Butterfield Road. Vivid memories of the old location live on for many grads of the campus that today is the home of the Prisco Community Center of the Fox Valley Park District. Many of those memories came alive again recently when nine members of the Class of 1965 attended their 60th class reunion at the academy. I was fortunate to join my classmates Tony Johnson, Bill Loftus, Tom Huberty, Bob Weber, Bob Woodrick, Gael Brewbaker, Dan Fox and Marty Cavato for an evening of renewed friendships and storytelling. Although there were many fun remembrances of the Lake Street Campus days and it was still very nice to see old friends, the 60th reunion seemed to be different from reunions of previous decades. We lost three of our classmates soon after graduation as a result of the war in Vietnam, and have lost many others along the way. It was, after all, a gathering of 78-year-old men who could not quite believe that 60 years had gone by so quickly. Our group of nine attendees represented a class of 168 young men. We remembered our living classmates who could not attend, but tried not to forget our friends who have passed away. They were an important part of our lives, and we had spent 12 years together in Catholic schools with some of them. Conversations became more about careers, retirement, spouses, kids and grandkids, and less about the fun times of 60-plus years ago. Short discussions of various medical issues were of course included but, thankfully, none about politics. This reunion was different, but in a good way in my opinion. The great Chicago columnist, Mike Royko, would frequently write about 'complaints and great thoughts from readers.' In that spirit, I asked several of my classmates for some of their 'great thoughts' about the six decades of our lives since we parted in 1965. These are samples of some of their reflections: 'The greatest change over the last 60 years has certainly been technological, but societal change has been most dramatic.' 'Sadly, we are seeing Catholic schools that were built to serve growing enrollments in the 1960s now sitting empty and shuttered.' 'I'm much less optimistic about the future of our society than I'm sure my parents were at a similar age.' 'When I drive past the playgrounds where we played endless summers of ball games, they are abandoned and lonely looking.' 'I see too much egoism and greed these days, and not sufficient concern for the common good.' 'My kids experienced more world travel before they reached age 30 than I have in my entire life. Not because they were wealthy, but because of their expertise and talents.' One classmate listed 'things a suburban 1965 grad could never imagine he would see 60 years later': 'More women than men would be graduating from college.' 'Smoking would be banned inside buildings, airplanes and even outdoor venues.' 'The Catholic Church would elect Polish, German and American popes.' 'Middle-income American families would typically have a car that cost over $50,000, and often two such cars.' 'There would be five presidential elections in a row, and the winners would have no military service.' 'West Point would begin accepting female cadets in 1976, and Marmion Academy would do the same a brief 50 years later.' A 'reality check' happened for me in the days following the recent class reunion when the concept of 60 years really began to hit home. The guys who live in my memory as strong, young teenagers (many of whom were star athletes and seemingly indestructible) are now much older men. Many of them have grandchildren, and some have great- grandchildren. Many have had difficult lives, and almost one-fourth of them have passed away according to the published alumni guide. Our elementary and high school friends, living and deceased, were and are important to our lives. Away from the classroom, we learned important life lessons from one another without actually realizing it. We learned to get along, and as much as some of us disliked it at the time, the military environment of Marmion Academy probably helped us with some of those life lessons. Reminisce with some of your oldest friends and make an effort to reunite with others while you and they are still able. You were important to one another, and you may find that those relationships are still rewarding.
Fox News
4 hours ago
- Fox News
South Korea's move to lower tensions with Kim Jong Un threatens 400,000 Christians
FIRST ON FOX: A move aimed at lowering tensions between South and North Korea is threatening, rather than improving, life for the estimated 400,000 Christians who live in the North. The policy has been slammed as "a catastrophic strategic mistake." South Korea's new President, Lee Jae-myung, ordered a reported 80% of radio broadcasts from the South, beamed into the North, to stop transmitting in May. The President also declared that loudspeakers that had been broadcasting anti-communist propaganda on the border between the two countries should be taken down. Myung reportedly told his Cabinet in Seoul, "I hope such reciprocal measures will gradually lead to dialogue and communication" between the two Koreas, the Korea Times reported Tuesday, adding that the South Korean President wants South and North Korea to "shift from a relationship that causes harm to each other to one that is mutually beneficial." In a statement reported by news website on August 5, South Korea's defense ministry added that the new measures were "practical measures to help ease inter-Korean tensions, within a range that does not affect the military's readiness posture." But the shutdown of radio stations is having a drastic effect on North Korea's Christians. The Kim Jong-un regime has ruled that it is a crime to worship Christianity. Even being found with a Bible can lead to execution, normally with a bullet, sometimes reportedly after torture. There's no general access to the internet for ordinary citizens. The only practical way Christians can experience the Gospel and Christian teaching or thoughts is to secretly listen to a radio. But now the Stimson Center's 38 North, a publication analyzing data on North Korea, says broadcasts into the country from the South, including broadcasts previously backed by the U.S. Agency for Global Media, have been cut back by almost 80% since May, and they advise that level could fall even further over the coming months. It's also reported that it is more difficult to hear the Christian message now. Because there are fewer broadcasts still going into the North, authorities are said to be having greater success in electronically jamming them. A U.S. State Department spokesperson expressed concern, telling Fox News Digital, "Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Rubio, the State Department Office of International Religious Freedom is actively looking into new ways to advance freedom of religion around the world, including in North Korea, and for North Korea's severely persecuted Christian community. President Trump is a champion for religious freedom globally, including defending people's ability to read the Bible and freely access religious texts." It is impossible to over-estimate the importance of these broadcasts to Christians in North Korea, Timothy Cho, who defected from the country when he was 17, told Fox News Digital from London. Cho serves on the Secretariat of the British government's All-Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea, saying "we are sharing the Gospel with our brothers and sisters on the ground in North Korea. This significance we cannot compare with any amount of values, because it is hope. It is hope, and it is light and it is the message they can rely on during the darkest time inside North Korea." In North Korea, Cho claimed, the ruling Kim family dynasty is portrayed collectively as gods, not only the so-called 'Supreme Leaders," but supreme beings. He explained that's why Christianity is so feared by the government. He added that "the most dangerous threat to North Korean authority is the claim of there being a true God who is not connected to the Kim dynasty." "Underground Christianity provides a space for the free exchange of ideas. Christianity is a defining feature of the DNA of the Korean people," Greg Scarlatiou, President and CEO of the Washington-based Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, told Fox News Digital. "The Kim family regime wants none of that, having tried so hard to obliterate the true identity of the Korean people." "The shutting down of radio stations beaming information into North Korea is a catastrophic strategic mistake. True change can't come from the Kim family. It can only come from the people of North Korea, especially Christians. And the only thing the outside world can do to help them is empowerment through information." North Korea is at the top of Open Doors' World Watch List for persecution of Christians again this year. Open Doors is a global organization that supports and speaks up for Christians persecuted for their faith. The report noted, "Police and intelligence agents search homes without warning. If they find Christian materials, it is considered a crime against the nation, and the whole family can be banished, imprisoned or executed. Those who use an unregistered smartphone or radio to access unapproved media are punished." The report continued, "Christians only dare to listen to radio programs at night, hidden under blankets. Each act of worship, even though conducted by oneself, is perceived as an "act of extreme disloyalty." Citizens are trained to report anyone who might be an enemy of the regime, including family members. "The national media broadcast anti-Christian content, where Christians are portrayed as evil betrayers of the nation, and missionary activities are referred to as acts of terrorism," the Open Doors report noted. On Thursday, Kim Yo-jong, the North Korean leader's sister, and Deputy Department Director of the Publicity and Information Department of the ruling Workers Party in Pyongyang, made it clear that North Korea will not lessen controls. She released a statement, monitored by a source in Seoul, reportedly saying, "We don't care whether South Korea dismantles the loudspeakers or stops the broadcasts. We have no intention of improving relations with America's loyal lackeys."
Boston Globe
20 hours ago
- Boston Globe
100 days of Pope Leo XIV: A calm papacy that avoids polemics is coming into focus
Leo seems eager above all to avoid polemics or making the papacy about himself, and wants instead to focus on Christ and peace. Advertisement That seems exactly what many Catholic faithful want, and may respond to what today's church needs. 'He's been very direct and forthright … but he's not doing spontaneous press hits,' said Kevin Hughes, chair of theology and religious studies at Leo's alma mater, Villanova University. Leo has a different style than Francis, and that has brought relief to many, Hughes said in a telephone interview. 'Even those who really loved Pope Francis always kind of held their breath a little bit: You didn't know what was going to come out next or what he was going to do,' Hughes said. Advertisement Leo has certainly gone out of his way in his first 100 days to try to heal divisions that deepened during Francis' pontificate, offering messages of unity and avoiding controversy at almost every turn. Even his signature issue — confronting the promise and peril posed by artificial intelligence — is something that conservatives and progressives alike agree is important. Francis' emphasis on caring for the environment and migrants often alienated conservatives. Closer to home, Leo offered the Holy See bureaucracy a reassuring, conciliatory message after Francis' occasionally authoritarian style rubbed some in the Vatican the wrong way. 'Popes come and go, but the Curia remains,' Leo told Vatican officials soon after his May 8 election. Leo, though, has cemented Francis' environmental legacy by celebrating the first-ever ecologically inspired Mass. He has furthered that legacy by giving the go-ahead for the Vatican to turn a 430-hectare (1,000-acre) field north of Rome into a vast solar farm that should generate enough electricity to meet Vatican City's needs and turn it into the world's first carbon-neutral state. He has fine-tuned financial transparency regulations that Francis initiated, tweaked some other decrees to give them consistency and logic, and confirmed Francis in deciding to declare one of the 19th century's most influential saints, John Henry Newman, a 'doctor' of the church. But he hasn't granted any sit-down, tell-all interviews or made headline-grabbing, off-the-cuff comments like his predecessor did. He hasn't made any major appointments, including to fill his old job, or taken any big trips. In marking the 80th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki last week, he had a chance to match Francis' novel declaration that the mere possession of nuclear weapons was 'immoral.' But he didn't. Advertisement Compared to President Donald Trump, the other American world leader who took office in 2025 with a flurry of Sharpie-penned executive decrees, Leo has eased into his new job slowly, deliberately and quietly, almost trying not to draw attention to himself. At 69, he seems to know that he has time on his side, and that after Francis' revolutionary papacy, the church might need a bit of a breather. One Vatican official who knows Leo said he expects his papacy will have the effect of a 'calming rain' on the church. Maria Isabel Ibarcena Cuarite, a Peruvian member of a Catholic charismatic group, said it was precisely Leo's quiet emphasis on church traditions, its sacraments and love of Christ, that drew her and upward of 1 million young people to Rome for a special Jubilee week this month. Ibarcena said Francis had confused young people like herself with his outreach to LGBTQ+ Catholics and approval of blessings for same-sex couples. Such gestures went beyond what a pope was supposed to do and what the church taught, she thought. Leo, she said, has emphasized that marriage is a sacrament between men and woman. 'Francis was ambiguous, but he is firm,' she said. From his very first appearance on the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica, Leo has insisted he is first and foremost a 'son of St. Augustine. ' It was a reference to the fifth century theological and devotional giant of early Christianity, St. Augustine of Hippo, who inspired the 13th century religious Augustinian order as a community of 'mendicant' friars. Advertisement Like the other big mendicant orders of the early church — the Franciscans, Dominicans and Carmelites — the Augustinians spread across Christian Europe over the centuries. Today, Augustinian spirituality is rooted in a deep interior life of prayer, living in community, and journeying together in search of truth in God. In nearly every speech or homily since his May 8 election, Leo has cited Augustine in one way or another. 'I see a kind of Augustinian flavor in the way that he's presenting all these things,' said Hughes, the theology professor who is an Augustine scholar. Leo joined the Augustinians after graduating from Augustinian-run Villanova, outside Philadelphia, and was twice elected its prior general. He has visited the Augustinian headquarters outside St. Peter's a few times since his election, and some wonder if he will invite some brothers to live with him in the Apostolic Palace to recreate the spirit of Augustinian community life there. Leo is also very much a product of the Francis papacy. Francis named Prevost bishop of Chiclayo, Peru, in 2014 and then moved him to head one of the most important Vatican jobs in 2023 — vetting bishop nominations. In retrospect, it seems Francis had his eye on Prevost as a possible successor. Given Francis' stump speech before the 2013 conclave that elected him pope, the then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio essentially described Prevost in identifying the church's mission today: He said the church was 'called to go outside of itself and go to the peripheries, not just geographic but also the existential peripheries.' Prevost, who hails from Chicago, spent his adult life as a missionary in Peru, eventually becoming bishop of Chiclayo. Advertisement 'He is the incarnation of the 'unity of difference,' because he comes from the center, but he lives in the peripheries,' said Emilce Cuda, secretary of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. Cuda said during a recent conference hosted by Georgetown University that Leo encapsulated in 'word and gesture' the type of missionary church Francis promoted. That said, for all Leo owes to Bergoglio, the two didn't necessarily get along. Prevost has recounted that at one point when he was the Augustinian superior, the then-archbishop of Buenos Aires expressed interest in assigning an Augustinian priest to a specific job in his archdiocese. 'And I, as prior general, said 'I understand, Your Eminence, but he's got to do something else' and so I transferred him somewhere else,' Prevost told parishioners in his home state of Illinois in 2024. Prevost said he 'naively' thought the Francis wouldn't remember him after his 2013 election, and that regardless 'he'll never appoint me bishop' due to the disagreement. Bergoglio not only made him bishop, he laid the groundwork for Prevost to succeed him as pope, the first North American pope following the first South American.
