
-
'Don't want to die': Lesotho HIV patients look to traditional medicine
-
Curry scores 37 as Warriors outgun LeBron's Lakers
-
Crops under threat as surprise March heatwave hits Central Asia: study
-
Japan PM says Trump tariffs a 'national crisis'
-
Security 'breakdown' allows armed men into Melbourne's MCG
-
Norris fastest in Japan GP first practice, Tsunoda sixth on Red Bull debut
-
Albon says Thailand taking bid for F1 race 'very seriously'
-
'It's gone': conservation science in Thailand's burning forest
-
Protest as quake-hit Myanmar junta chief joins Bangkok summit
-
EU leaders push for influence at Central Asia summit
-
Asian stocks extend global rout after Trump's shock tariff blitz
-
Lewandowski, Mbappe duel fuelling tight La Liga title race
-
South Korea court upholds President Yoon's impeachment, strips him of office
-
Liverpool march towards title as Man City face Man Utd
-
Finland's colossal bomb shelters a model for jittery Europe
-
Athletes frustrated as France mulls Muslim headscarf ban in sport
-
Korda downs Kupcho to stay alive at LPGA Match Play
-
German industry grapples with AI at trade fair
-
Irish school trains thatchers to save iconic roofs
-
'Frightening': US restaurants, producers face tariff whiplash
-
Cuba looks to sun to solve its energy crisis
-
Experts warn 'AI-written' paper is latest spin on climate change denial
-
PSG eye becoming France's first 'Invincibles'
-
Late birdie burst lifts Ryder to Texas Open lead
-
Five potential Grand National fairytale endings
-
Trump purges national security team after meeting conspiracist
-
More work for McIlroy even with two wins before Masters
-
Trump hopeful of 'great' PGA-LIV golf merger
-
No.1 Scheffler goes for third Masters crown in four years
-
Where Trump's tariffs could hurt Americans' wallets
-
Trump says 'very close to a deal' on TikTok
-
Trump tariffs on Mexico: the good, the bad, the unknown
-
Postecoglou denies taunting Spurs fans in Chelsea defeat
-
Oscar-winning Palestinian director speaks at UN on Israeli settlements
-
With tariff war, Trump also reshapes how US treats allies
-
Fernandez fires Chelsea into fourth as pressure mounts on Postecoglou
-
South Korea court to decide impeached president's fate
-
Penguin memes take flight after Trump tariffs remote island
-
E.T., no home: Original model of movie alien doesn't sell at auction
-
Italy's Brignone has surgery on broken leg with Winter Olympics looming
-
Trump defiant as tariffs send world markets into panic
-
City officials vote to repair roof on home of MLB Rays
-
Rockets forward Brooks gets one-game NBA ban for technicals
-
Pentagon watchdog to probe defense chief over Signal chat row
-
US tariffs could push up inflation, slow growth: Fed official
-
New Bruce Springsteen music set for June 27 release
-
Tom Cruise pays tribute to Val Kilmer
-
Mexico president welcomes being left off Trump's tariffs list
-
Zuckerberg repeats Trump visits in bid to settle antitrust case
-
US fencer disqualified for not facing transgender rival

Sporting a feathered headdress, Pope finds 'Eden' in Papua New Guinea
Pope Francis visited a remote jungle-flanked community in Papua New Guinea Sunday, where he urged an end to violence, and "superstition and magic" that tarnishes a place he likened to Eden.
The 87-year-old pontiff touched down in Vanimo, a coastal town a few degrees south of the equator, as he marked the halfway point of a gruelling 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific.
Donning a traditional Bird of Paradise feathered headdress despite the stiffing tropical heat, the pope drove home his pledge to embrace people and places on "the periphery".
He described Vanimo as a "grandiose spectacle of nature bursting forth with life, all evoking the image of Eden".
He was greeted as a guest of honour by bare-chested Walsa tribesmen with body paint, ornate headdresses and bands made of feathers, shells and grass, who performed a ceremonial dance.
The pope thanked the assembled thousands, some of whom had walked or sailed for days to come and see him, and praised the "contagious smiles and your exuberant joy" of local children.
But he also painted this as a troubled paradise.
He urged the faithful and a handful of local missionaries to help "overcome divisions -- personal, family and tribal" and "to drive out fear, superstition and magic from people's hearts".
- Religion alongside local beliefs -
These and other evils, he said, "imprison and take away the happiness of so many of our brothers and sisters, even in this country".
More than 90 percent of Papua New Guinea's 12 million residents call themselves Christian, and about quarter of those are Catholic.
But the religion sits alongside a panoply of local beliefs, customs and rites -- some of which spark bloody zeal.
Pockets of Papua New Guinea are plagued by tribal violence and deeply rooted beliefs about the existence of witchcraft.
Village mobs routinely round up those falsely accused of black magic, usually women, murdering them in gruesome ordeals.
Australian researchers have estimated about 3,000 deaths in over the last 20 years.
The pope urged his flock to tackle such social ills head on, and to remake the image of their nation.
"Make Papua New Guinea famous not only for its variety of plant and animal life, its enchanting beaches and clear sea, but famous above all for the good people you meet here," he said.
It is a message that has resonated with Papua New Guineans, many of whom hope the pope's visit can transform their nation.
Earlier Sunday, the pope held a mass for 35,000 people in the capital, Port Moresby.
Margaret Clive, an elderly street vendor in the capital, said that many people had complained about the pope's visit, asking what it would bring them.
"I am happy Pope is here" she said. "He is a world religious leader bringing the message of peace."
"There is a lot of violence against women and children, here in the city, the youth are snatching bags from mothers who market."
"Christian principles are hidden while our sinful ways are transparent, we need change."
There he will encounter a resolutely Catholic nation, but one in which the clergy has been beset by child abuse scandals.
P.Anderson--BTB