April 13, 2025 6:49 am
VATICAN CITY (AP) — A convalescing Pope Francis greeted the crowd in St. Peter’s Square on Palm Sunday, wishing more than 20,000 faithful a “Good Palm Sunday, a good Holy Week,” in a reassuring sign of his recovery after a life-threatening battle with double pneumonia. Many in the crowd reached out to touch Francis’ hand or garments as he was brought in a wheelchair down a ramp to the main altar, where he issued his brief greeting into a microphone. Francis was not wearing nasal tubes for supplemental oxygen, as he had during a similar appearance last Sunday. On his way back to St. Peter’s Basilica from where he had emerged, Francis stopped to bless a rosary, and offered candy to a boy who greeted him.
April 13, 2025 4:17 am
Holy Week is the most significant week in the Church year. It begins Sunday with Palm Sunday and extends through the week until Easter Sunday. The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh will celebrate Holy Week offering Catholics the opportunity to partake in several liturgies and community events throughout the week. The week begins on Palm Sunday with Bishop David Zubik celebrating Mass at 10:00 am at St. Paul Cathedral. Mass will also be celebrated on Holy Thursday and Good Friday. Holy Saturday has several blessing services and the week culminates with Easter Sunday Mass at 10:00 am with Bishop Zubik celebrating Mass at the St. Alexis Church in the Saint Aiden Parish in Wexford. For the Holy Week schedule at your church, check your parish websites for details.
April 13, 2025 6:07 am
WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. —(WPXI)- Many excited park visitors braved the cold for Kennywood’s opening day Saturday, kicking off its longest season since 1931. Not everyone who showed up, however, got to enjoy the rides and attractions. Dozens of teenagers were turned away hours before the time when park rules say they need an adult chaperone. Many angry and confused parents reached out to Channel 11 saying about 60 teens were stranded at the gate Saturday afternoon after they were dropped off without any warning. Channel 11′s cameras showed one group of teens being turned away at the gate by a Kennywood employee. Channel 11 reached out to Kennywood asking several questions, including if the rules for minors have changed. A spokesperson told Channel 11 the policy has not changed and then pointed us to the fine print at the bottom of that same web page that reads, “Our safety and security procedures, including the chaperone, bag, and outside food & beverage policies, are subject to change without notice.” Channel 11 reached out to Kennywood again for more information on specifically why minors were turned away at the gate before 4pm and how many were not allowed in. We’ve also asked Kennywood if teens could face a similar situation on Sunday if they don’t have a chaperone during the day. We’re still waiting to hear back.
April 13, 2025 4:14 am
The Trump administration has paused the enforcement of the Silica Rule. The rule is aimed at combating rising black lung and silicosis cases being suffered by coal miners. In a statement released by the Center for Coalfield Justice, the pause is temporary and is intended for operators to secure necessary equipment and otherwise come into compliance. The rule has been finalized since April of 2024 and was set to go into effect this month. In addition to the pause of the Silica Rule, the Department of Government Efficiency is closing 34 Mine Safety and Health Administration offices in 19 states and has placed all 25 employees at the CDC’s Coal Workers’ Health Surveillance Program on administrative leave. Nick Hood, Senior Organizer at CCJ said that “Coal has been on a long and steep decline for decades, but miner issues have increased, and pausing the Silica Rule only hurts them more.
April 12, 2025 10:42 am
MUSCAT, Oman (AP) — Iran and the United States will hold more negotiations next week over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program. Iranian state television reported Saturday that U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi “briefly spoke in the presence of the Omani foreign minister” at the end of the talks Saturday. It was the first round of talks between the two countries. American officials have not acknowledged the Iranian reports. The two sides spoke for over two hours at a location in the outskirts of Oman.
April 12, 2025 4:36 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has summed up his annual physical by saying, “I did well.” He says he believes his doctors would release a report on Sunday. The 78-year-old spent nearly five hours at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Friday afternoon, undergoing what he called “every test you can imagine.” Trump said that “overall, I felt I was in very good shape.” He says he has a “good heart, a good soul” and took a cognitive test in which he says he got “every answer right.” Despite long questioning predecessor Joe Biden’s physical and mental capacity, Trump has routinely kept basic facts about his own health shrouded in secrecy.
April 12, 2025 4:26 am
GREENBELT, Md. (AP) — Lawyers for the Trump administration say they are unable to provide information on the location and status of a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador. The attorneys told U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis on Friday that they haven’t had enough time to review a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court the day before. The Supreme Court had directed the administration to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the U.S. The judge said at a hearing on Friday that it was “extremely troubling” that the Trump administration couldn’t provide more details about Abrego Garcia or plans for his return.
April 11, 2025 4:23 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is betting that a beleaguered Iran is so vulnerable following a tumultuous 18 months in the Middle East that it might finally be ready to abandon its nuclear program. The renewed push to solve one of the most delicate foreign policy issues facing the White House and the Mideast will begin in earnest Saturday. That’s when Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi gather in the Middle East sultanate of Oman. Trump says he prefers a diplomatic solution, even as he warns Iran it will face “great danger” if talks don’t go well. He says, “They can’t have a nuclear weapon.”
April 12, 2025 4:32 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge is siding with the Trump administration in allowing immigration agents to conduct enforcement operations at houses of worship despite a lawsuit filed by religious groups over the new policy. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich in Washington on Friday refused to grant a preliminary injunction to the plaintiffs, more than two dozen Christian and Jewish groups representing millions of Americans. The judge found that only a few such operations have been conducted in or around churches and attendance declines reported by the faiths could be due to more general increased immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump.
April 11, 2025 5:54 pm
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) — Officials say three people were killed and one was injured when a small plane crashed Friday morning in South Florida near a major interstate highway and pushed a car onto railroad tracks. Boca Raton Fire Rescue officials say the plane crash that killed all three people on board emitted a fireball when it hit the ground, injuring a person in a nearby car. Several roads near the Boca Raton Airport will remain closed near Interstate 95. The FAA says the Tallahassee-bound Cessna aircraft went down about 10:20 a.m. after departing from Boca Raton Airport..
