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United Nations agencies' monthly cash transfers to Gaza residents are inadvertently strengthening the Hamas terrorist organization, as the group and affiliated traders continue to control the money flow to the enclave, an expert on Hamas' financial and economic operations said.

"Hamas exploits its role as the de facto ruler of Gaza to extract financial gains from aid money sent by U.N. organizations to civilians via apps still operating in the region," Eyal Ofer told Fox News Digital.

"The aid system is being manipulated by Hamas and affiliated traders. Hamas does this largely behind the scenes, leveraging their control over large merchants, crime families, and using cash to establish a shadow banking system within Gaza."

HOW ISRAEL'S WAR AGAINST HAMAS TERRORISTS WILL BE DIFFERENT UNDER TRUMP

Each month, international organizations send significant sums into Gaza's economy. The U.N.'s World Food Programme (WFP) transfers approximately $18.43 million, reaching 82,636 families, with each family receiving an average of $209, according to open-source data. UNICEF’s monthly assistance averages $5 million, helping to reach at least 20,000 families every month. 

"I go to the market and meet people whose job is to provide cash in exchange for a fee," Gaza resident Shahab Yousef told Israel's news agency TPS-IL. "The fee is 20–30%. If I transfer 1,000 shekels [$271] I get back 700 [$190]," he said. "For big purchases, I pay digitally. But at the market, I need cash, and I lose 30 percent every time."

Another Gaza resident, Nidal Qawasmeh, expressed similar frustration to TPS-IL. "These people are charging 30 percent just to give you cash. I just want to take care of my family, but everything costs me more because of this. Prices are insane."

The specific amount received per family every month is around $270 (or 1,000 New Israeli Shekels), which was calculated as 80% of the Survival Minimum Expenditure Basket, UNICEF told Fox News Digital. Smaller organizations like UNFPA and others also contribute, bringing the total to about $39.66 million per month, reaching 60% of Gaza’s households, according to open-data sources.

Despite the scale of direct financial aid, which reaches over half of the enclave's population, Gaza’s severe food insecurity and high inflation (91% and 118%, respectively, as of January 2024) underscore its importance. However, the way this money circulates within Gaza is far more complex. "Hamas controls much of the cash that enters Gaza through various channels," Ofer told Fox News Digital, "People who receive money via mobile apps must convert it into cash to use in local markets, but this involves hefty fees, with many money changers tied to Hamas or its allies."

TPS-IL reported that Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar recently warned that Hamas’s economic strength in Gaza relies on billions of shekels in cash, paid as salaries and quickly reclaimed through taxes on merchants. In a letter to Bank of Israel Governor Prof. Amir Yaron, Sa’ar urged the cancelation of the circulation of 200-shekel bills previously introduced into Gaza, saying that experts believe the move would severely damage Hamas’s financial network. The Bank of Israel rejected the proposal, citing technical reasons and claiming that implementation was not feasible.

Ofer's research found that the fees can range from 20% to 35%, meaning recipients lose a significant portion of their aid just to access it. "In videos from Gaza, you can see traders refusing to accept app funds and forcing customers to convert them into cash, knowing they will lose at least 20% in the process," he said.

Peter Gallo, an international lawyer and former Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) investigator at the U.N., told Fox News Digital, "If an investigator in Israel can figure it out, the aid agencies either knew or should have known. Twenty to thirty percent is just ridiculous. That’s extortion. It’s what some have politely described as a ‘revolutionary tax.’ In fairness, the aid agencies might argue they had no alternative, It is the cost of doing business, but it would have been better if they were honest about it from the start."

HAMAS TERROR GROUP REPORTEDLY BUCKLING UNDER FINANCIAL STRAIN AMID ISRAELI MILITARY GAINS AND GROWING UNREST

A spokesperson for UNICEF told Fox News Digital, "UNICEF is aware of the cash liquidity crisis in Gaza and the continuous shortage of hard cash, which is a direct consequence of the banking system’s inability to function amid the ongoing conflict.

"Since May 2024, UNICEF has introduced fully digital cash payments via e-wallets, which do not require hard cash at any point. By using e-wallets, recipients of humanitarian digital cash transfers can purchase goods such as food, hygiene items and medicine without ever handling physical money," the spokesperson said.

"The use of digital e-wallets can be accessed through an app and works on the most basic smartphones. When implemented, these digital cash payments via e-wallets eliminate the need for cash conversion and, consequently, the payment of any fees. The UNICEF humanitarian digital cash program adheres to the highest standards of neutrality and impartiality. No external party, actor, or agency—not even the beneficiaries themselves—has any role or influence in the design or implementation of the program, including the composition of the beneficiary list, payment schedule, frequency and amounts."

The spokesperson claimed: "More than 1.8 million people—close to the entire population of Gaza—are grappling with extreme food insecurity, with at least half of them being children. . . . Acute malnutrition among children is rising at alarming rates. The UNICEF humanitarian cash transfer program is, simply put, keeping children alive in the midst of a war not of their making by providing them with access to essential items for their survival. UNICEF’s monthly budget for humanitarian cash transfers in Gaza averages USD 5 million to support approximately 20,000 families. We estimate that these parameters are too small to significantly impact the local economy."

The World Food Programme didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment.

"Turning a blind eye is not acceptable. The U.N. Security Council has been addressing terrorist financing since 2001, yet aid agencies continue to ignore the fact that Hamas is making a profit off this money flow, despite international efforts to stop terrorist financing," Gallo said.

The tomb of Pope Francis opened for visitors at St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome on Sunday, a day after world leaders and a crowd of hundreds of thousands attended the funeral of the late leader of the Catholic Church. 

Roman Catholic faithful are filing past the simple white tomb in St. Mary Major Basilica. Many are administering the sign of the cross or snapping photos on their cell phones, as ushers urge them to keep moving to accommodate the thousands who flocked to the Rome basilica to see the tomb, forming a long line outside. The tomb was opened on the second of nine days of official mourning for Francis, after which a conclave will be held to elect the next pope.

A single white rose was placed on the tomb that said "Franciscus" – the pope's name in Latin. A light cast its warm glow over the tomb and a reproduction of the late pontiff's pectoral cross on the wall above it. 

The wait time is about an hour, according to SkyTV. Some visitors arrived before dawn so that they could get in at 7 a.m. when the tomb first opened.

An estimated 200,000 people also attended a special Mass at St. Peter's Basilica on Sunday by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state. 

WORLD LEADERS AND MOURNERS OF THE CATHOLIC FAITH GATHER IN VATICAN CITY FOR POPE FRANCIS' FUNERAL

Parolin – a close collaborator of Francis – delivered a much-anticipated homily. He is considered No. 2 at the Vatican and is one of the possible contenders to be the next pope.

"The shepherd whom the Lord gave to his people, Pope Francis, has ended his earthly life and has left us," Parolin said in his homily. "The grief at his departure, the sense of sadness that assails us, the turmoil we feel in our hearts, the sense of bewilderment: we are experiencing all of this, like the apostles grieving over the death of Jesus. Yet, the Gospel tells us that it is precisely in these moments of darkness that the Lord comes to us with the light of the resurrection, to illuminate our hearts."

Parolin emphasized that God's mercy was a central focus of the late Argentinian pope. 

"He reminded us that ‘mercy’ is the very name of God, and, therefore, no one can put a limit on his merciful love with which he wants to raise us up and make us new people. It is important to welcome as a precious treasure this principle on which Pope Francis insisted so much. And – allow me to say – our affection for him, which is being manifested in this time, must not remain a mere emotion of the moment; we must welcome his legacy and make it part of our lives, opening ourselves to God’s mercy and also being merciful to one another," Parolin said. "Mercy takes us back to the heart of faith."

Parolin added, "Only mercy heals and creates a new world, putting out the fires of distrust, hatred and violence: this is the great teaching of Pope Francis." 

Among those in attendance were many young people who originally came to Rome for what was supposed to be the canonization of the first millennial saint, Carlo Acutis, during special holy days devoted to teenagers. 

About 80,000 youths had registered to attend the Jubilee. Many groups of youths, some in scouting uniforms, attended Francis' funeral on Saturday and again filled St. Peter's Square for the special Mass on Sunday.

5 QUOTES FROM CARDINAL ROBERT SARAH, A FAVORITE AMONG CONSERVATIVES TO SUCCEED POPE FRANCIS

"The joy of Easter, which sustains us in this time of trial and sadness, is something that can almost be touched in this square today; you can see it etched above all in your faces, dear children and young people who have come from all over the world to celebrate the Jubilee," Parolin said. "You come from so many places: from all of the dioceses of Italy, from Europe, from the United States to Latin America, from Africa to Asia, from the United Arab Emirates… With you here, the whole world is truly present!"

No date has yet been set for the conclave, but it is expected to start between May 5 and May 10. 

Pope Francis chose his place of burial in St. Mary Major Basilica, near an icon of the Madonna that he revered, because it reflects his "humble, simple and essential" life, the archbishop who administers the basilica said Friday.

Cardinals who traveled to Rome for Francis' funeral will be meeting regularly this week ahead of the conclave as they start to chart a way forward for the 1.4 billion-strong Catholic Church. 

At 4 p.m. on Sunday, the cardinals will go to pray at Francis' tomb.

Italian media reported that former President Joe Biden met privately with Parolin on Saturday. In 2015, the two met when Biden sought the comfort of the cardinal after the death of his son Beau.

Fox News' Courtney Walsh-Annesi and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan - Some in Taiwan are watching with growing unease as the Catholic Church prepares to elect a new leader following the death of Pope Francis. The Holy See is the only European state that maintains diplomatic relations with Taipei, but some fear the growing ties between the Vatican and Beijing could change things.

Taiwan is home to fewer than 300,000 Catholics. By contrast, estimates put the number of Catholics in communist China at anywhere between eight and 12 million, with another 390,000 in Chinese-ruled Hong Kong. Despite these figures, the Holy See continues to recognize Taiwan as the sole "China."

After Pope Francis’ death, Taiwan’s President William Lai quickly said he planned to attend the funeral. A short time later, however, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that former Vice President and devout Catholic Chen Chien-jen will be Taiwan’s envoy. 

POPE FRANCIS EMPHASIZED CATHOLICISM GLOBALLY, REACHED BEYOND US, EUROPE INTO IMPOVERISHED NATIONS

According to Taipei-based lawyer and political risk analyst Ross Feingold, Taiwan will be disappointed that President Lai will miss this gathering of world leaders. "The precedent exists for Taiwan’s president to attend a pope’s funeral. In 2005, then-President Chen Shui-bian attended John Paul II’s funeral, so," he claimed, "it’s safe to assume President Lai’s team inquired whether Lai could attend Francis’ funeral, and equally safe to assume the Holy See’s response was a negative one."

After Pope Francis took office in 2013, the Vatican began to build ties with Beijing. In 2018, it signed a controversial agreement with China on the appointment of bishops. The deal—renewed and extended several times—gives both sides input on bishop selection, an attempt to bridge the divide between China’s state-run Catholic Church and an underground church loyal to Rome. Vatican officials insist the agreement is pastoral, not political. Still, for Taiwan, it is seen as a warning sign.

China, which cut ties with the Holy See in 1951, demands that all countries end diplomatic relations with Taiwan before establishing relations with Beijing. Taiwan’s official allies now number but 12, and the Holy See is its most symbolically significant diplomatic partner.

But Thomas Tu, a Vatican diplomacy expert at Taiwan’s National Chengchi University, told Fox News Digital that fears of an imminent switch are overblown. "This isn’t just about politics—it’s about the global Catholic mission," Tu said. "The Vatican has survived empires. It’s patient." Tu cited the Vatican’s relationship with Vietnam as evidence of pragmatic patience. China and Vietnam do not have formal ties, but the Vatican maintains a high-level religious representative there.

FIRST PHOTOS RELEASED OF POPE FRANCIS IN HIS CASKET; FUNERAL SET FOR SATURDAY

Pope Francis believed that engagement with China, however imperfect, is preferable to nothing. Francis was the first pope to fly through Chinese airspace and famously sent greetings to President Xi Jinping in 2014. On his visit to Mongolia in 2023, the pontiff also sent a "warm greeting to the noble Chinese people."

Each overture to Beijing has drawn criticism from within the Church, particularly from outspoken China critics, such as 93-year-old retired Cardinal Joseph Zen of Hong Kong, who was arrested in 2022 after China imposed a National Security Law that criminalized almost every form of dissent in that supposedly autonomous special administrative region. Zen's passport was recently returned to him by authorities so he could attend the pope's funeral.

Zen and others view any warming of ties with Beijing as kowtowing to an officially atheist regime.

Since 1957, Beijing, via its Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, has kept a tight leash on millions of Chinese Catholics. Pope Francis accepted some compromises with China, but the Vatican wants autonomy in spiritual matters, which may require a miracle to accomplish under China’s one-party dictatorship.

Some observers suggest that Beijing may eventually allow more space for the Vatican, but any formal deal would require the Holy See to sever ties with Taiwan, a non-negotiable prerequisite for China. 

With a new pope being elected in the next month, some in Taiwan are worried about a shift, but few experts believe the next pontiff will make any hasty decisions. "There’s no rush," said Dr. Chang Ching, a Senior Research Fellow of the ROC Society for Strategic Studies, "The Vatican knows how to wait, and China isn’t willing yet to grant the Chinese Catholic community the same privileges Catholics enjoy in most other nations. This seventy-plus-year rift is just a tiny moment in the long history of the Church and the even longer history of Chinese civilization."

A driver ran a car into a crowd at a Filipino festival in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday night, leaving several victims dead and others injured, local authorities said. 

The incident happened shortly after 8 p.m. at the Lapu Lapu Day block party, the Vancouver Police Department said in a social media post.

"A number of people have been killed and multiple others are injured after a driver drove into a crowd at a street festival at E. 41st Avenue and Fraser shortly after 8 p.m. tonight," police said.

SKYROCKETING ANTISEMITISM IN CANADA SPARKS CONCERN FOR COUNTRY'S JEWS AHEAD OF ELECTION

The exact number of people dead or injured was not immediately known.

The driver was taken into custody, police said. The motive for the person driving into the crowd is unclear at this time.

SENATE APPROVES PETER HOEKSTRA AS NEXT US AMBASSADOR TO CANADA

Video posted on social media showed victims and debris strewn across a long stretch of road.

A black SUV with a damaged front section was seen in still photos from the scene.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

India and Pakistan have intensified their hostilities over the hotly contested Kashmir region following a massacre of 26 mostly Indian tourists, which New Delhi linked to Pakistan.

Pakistan denies it was behind Tuesday's attack by gunmen on a group of tourists in Kashmir. Both sides have since escalated the tensions by exchanging diplomatic and trade sanctions against each other and raising fears of a military conflict.

INDIA VOWS TO HUNT TERRORISTS ‘TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH’ AS TENSIONS WITH PAKISTAN RISE AFTER KASHMIR ATTACK

Here are five reasons why a flare-up between India and Pakistan matters:

Under intense domestic pressure, India has hinted at the possibility of a limited military strike on Pakistan in response to what it called the "terror attack" with "cross-border links." Pakistan has made it clear that it will respond militarily to an attack.

This raises fears that an escalation by any one side could lead to a wider war. The last time the two nations came to blows was in 2019, when a suicide car bombing killed 40 Indian soldiers in Kashmir.

In 2021, the sides renewed a ceasefire agreement along their border, which has largely held. That relative calm was broken on Thursday after a brief exchange of fire between their armies.

Both India and Pakistan are armed with nuclear weapons. There are fears that any conventional war or skirmish between them could potentially turn into a nuclear exchange.

India and Pakistan fought two major wars, in 1965 and 1971, but in 1974, India conducted its first nuclear tests, raising the stakes in any military conflict. It triggered a nuclear race and Pakistan reached that same milestone in 1998.

Since then, India and Pakistan have had one major border skirmish in 1999 that killed at least 1,000 combatants. The fighting only stopped after the U.S. intervened.

India and China are geopolitical rivals whose armies clashed along the disputed Himalayan border in 2020. Ties between the Asian giants have improved since, but they still maintain large numbers of troops on their borders. Their borders are also contiguous to Pakistan's, making it the world’s only three-way nuclear junction.

Beijing also controls a part of the Kashmir region that New Delhi says belongs to India.

On the other hand, China is also a main ally of Pakistan and has helped advance its missile programs, creating additional military concerns for New Delhi. Meanwhile, India maintains strong defense ties with the U.S., which has long sought to limit Beijing’s rise in the Indo-Pacific region.

Experts say any conflict between India and Pakistan is unlikely to stay strictly between them, as their strategic partners are likely to get involved.

In response to the massacre, India suspended a crucial treaty that governs the flow of river waters into Pakistan. Pakistan said it would consider any attempt to stop the flow of water from India an "act of war."

Under the Indus Water treaty, India is obliged to let six rivers flow freely to Pakistan. If India follows through and restricts the flow, it could have a devastating impact on Pakistan's agriculture as it battles acute water shortages.

It's also a major environmental issue. Water insecurity is a big concern in both India and Pakistan due to rapidly growing populations and climate change.

Rights groups — including the U.N. — have blamed New Delhi for rights violations, including civilian killings and arbitrary arrests, in Indian-controlled Kashmir as a result of an intense crackdown by Indian forces. It has hurt India's human rights record and raised concerns that global powers are not doing enough to pressure New Delhi and hold it accountable.

Militants fighting against Indian rule have also killed scores of civilians, including Hindu pilgrims.

India has used military response against militants as part of its efforts to eradicate "terrorism," saying it threatens regional stability.

Former President Joe Biden was among many global luminaries in attendance at Pope Francis' funeral Saturday at the Vatican, but no longer being the leader of the free world changes everything.

Biden was accompanied by his wife, former first lady Jill Biden, but they were not seated near President Donald Trump and other world leaders. The couple instead sat toward the back of the foreign dignitaries section because they are no longer heads of state.

"Biden is no longer part of the cool kids club," one account commented on X, sharing an image of Biden near the back of the section at the funeral.

POPE FRANCIS HELD LINE ON GENDER IDEOLOGY, HAD WELCOMING POSTURE TO LGBT COMMUNITY

 "LMAO! They put Biden in the way back at the funeral of Pope Francis," another person commented on X.

"Look at how lost he looks." 

"They put Biden in the back of the Pope's funeral like a dog," another X user wrote.

"Joe Biden was treated like a nursing home patient on the world stage President Trump is treated like a Rockstar on the world stage!" another person posted on X, showing the former president far away from Trump and other world leaders.

Biden was also seen being escorted to his seat by his wife and a priest, gripping onto both and moving cautiously. 

Once in his seating area, Biden took selfies with Uganda Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa before the pope's funeral began. 

POPE FRANCIS' FUNERAL SCHEDULE, WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE NOVENDIALI, A 9-DAY PERIOD OF PRAYER, MOURNING

Biden posed in several other photos with other mourners in attendance at the funeral, and he was smiling in each snapshot. 

Biden, the second Catholic U.S. president, visited the Vatican in October 2021, when he and Pope Francis met to discuss topics like climate change and advocacy for the poor, according to a transcript fdrom the meeting. 

CHURCH EXPERT PREDICTS ELECTION OF NEXT POPE WILL FEATURE ‘MOST DIVERSE’ CONCLAVE IN CHURCH HISTORY

Biden had previously met Pope Francis on several other occasions, including during the pope’s visit to the U.S. in 2015. 

Biden also met with Pope Francis in June at the G7 Leaders’ Summit in Apulia, Italy, where the two discussed the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, according to a readout of the meeting. 

Biden, who awarded Pope Francis the Presidential Medal of Freedom in January, described him as a "consequential" leader Monday who was a "Pope for everyone." 

"He was unlike any who came before him," Biden said in a post on X Monday morning. "Pope Francis will be remembered as one of the most consequential leaders of our time and I am better for having known him. For decades, he served the most vulnerable across Argentina and his mission of serving the poor never ceased. As Pope, he was a loving pastor and challenging teacher who reached out to different faiths."

Francis, who had battled pneumonia for weeks before being released from the hospital, faced health complications for many years and had half a lung removed when he was young. 

Francis, 88, died Monday morning, the day after Easter, at the Vatican.

Dr. Andrea Arcangeli, the head of the Vatican’s health department, said the pope died of a cerebral stroke that ultimately caused heart failure, which put him into a coma and led to irreversible heart failure, according to Vatican officials.

He was elected to the papacy on March 13, 2013, and was the first Jesuit to become pope.

The pope's last public appearance was on Easter Sunday at St. Peter's Square.

Biden's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital's Diana Stancy contributed to this report.

A massive explosion and fire rocked a port Saturday in southern Iran purportedly linked to a shipment of a chemical ingredient used to make missile propellant, killing eight people and injuring around 750 others.

Helicopters dumped water from the air on the raging fire hours after the initial explosion, which happened at the Shahid Rajaei port just as Iran and the U.S. met Saturday in Oman for the third round of negotiations over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.

IRAN, US BEGIN NEGOTIATIONS OVER TEHRAN'S ADVANCING NUCLEAR PROGRAM

No one in Iran outright suggested that the explosion came from an attack. However, even Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who led the talks, on Wednesday acknowledged that "our security services are on high alert given past instances of attempted sabotage and assassination operations designed to provoke a legitimate response."

Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni gave the casualty figure in an interview on state television. But there were few details on what sparked the blaze just outside of Bandar Abbas, which burned into Saturday night, causing other containers to reportedly explode.

The port took in a shipment of "sodium perchlorate rocket fuel" in March, the private security firm Ambrey said. The fuel is part of a shipment from China by two vessels to Iran first reported in January by the Financial Times. The fuel was going to be used to replenish Iran's missile stocks, which had been depleted by its direct attacks on Israel during the war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

"The fire was reportedly the result of improper handling of a shipment of solid fuel intended for use in Iranian ballistic missiles," Ambrey said.

Ship-tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press put one of the vessels believed to be carrying the chemical in the vicinity in March, as Ambrey said. Iran hasn't acknowledged taking the shipment. The Iranian mission to the United Nations didn't respond to a request for comment on Saturday.

It's unclear why Iran wouldn't have moved the chemicals from the port, particularly after the Beirut port blast in 2020. That explosion, caused by the ignition of hundreds of tons of highly explosive ammonium nitrate, killed more than 200 people and injured more than 6,000 others. However, Israel did target Iranian missile sites where Tehran uses industrial mixers to create solid fuel.

Social media footage of the explosion on Saturday at Shahid Rajaei saw reddish-hued smoke rising from the fire just before the detonation. That suggests a chemical compound being involved in the blast — like in the Beirut explosion.

"Get back get back! Tell the gas (truck) to go!" a man in one video shouted just before the blast. "Tell him to go, it’s going to blow up! Oh God, this is blowing up! Everybody evacuate! Get back! Get back!"

On Saturday night, the state-run IRNA news agency said that the Customs Administration of Iran blamed a "stockpile of hazardous goods and chemical materials stored in the port area" for the blast, without elaborating.

An aerial shot released by Iranian media after the blast showed fires burning at multiple locations in the port, with authorities later warning about air pollution from chemicals such as ammonia, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide in the air. Schools in Bandar Abbas will be closed on Sunday as well.

Shahid Rajaei has been a target before. A 2020 cyberattack attributed to Israel targeted the port. It came after Israel said that it thwarted a cyberattack targeting its water infrastructure, which it attributed to Iran. Israeli officials didn't respond to requests for comment regarding Saturday's explosion.

Social media videos showed black billowing smoke after the blast. Others showed glass blown out of buildings kilometers, or miles, away from the epicenter of the explosion. State media footage showed the injured crowding into at least one hospital, with ambulances arriving as medics rushed one person by on a stretcher.

Hasanzadeh, the provincial disaster management official, earlier told state television that the blast came from containers at Shahid Rajaei port in the city, without elaborating. State TV also reported that there had been a building collapse caused by the explosion, though no further details were offered.

The Interior Ministry said that it launched an investigation into the blast. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also offered his condolences for those affected in the blast.

Shahid Rajaei port in Hormozgan province is about 650 miles southeast of Iran's capital, Tehran, on the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which 20% of all oil traded passes.

As the world pays their final respects to Pope Francis, men and women everywhere, including a new generation of faithful, wait in anticipation for the College of Cardinals to convene and select a new pope.

A conclave, organized by the camerlengo, presently Cardinal Kevin Ferrell, begins 15 to 20 days after the pope’s death.

"Anything could happen," Tim Gabrielli, associate professor and Gudorf chair in Catholic intellectual traditions at the University of Dayton in Ohio, told Fox News Digital.

POPE FRANCIS REVEALED BURIAL WISHES JUST DAYS AFTER BECOMING POPE IN 2013

Pope Francis, the 266th pontiff, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, died on April 21, 2025, after 12 years as the Bishop of Rome.

"We really don’t have much of an idea," he said of Pope Francis’ successor. "I think anybody who says otherwise is maybe posturing."

Among the church leaders floated as the candidates-in-waiting are Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Hungarian Cardinal Peter Erdo and American Cardinal Raymond Burke.

"It's helpful to remember that the cardinal electors are going to be, conclave means with key, locked away … away from media and influences," Gabrielli said.

THEOLOGIAN ON ‘CONCLAVE’ ACCURACY, EXPECTATIONS FOR NEXT SECRETIVE EVENT AFTER POPE FRANCIS' DEATH

"We've got a group of people who play important roles in the church throughout the world, and they're coming together, spending time together, and this group of cardinals hasn't spent a lot of time together," Gabrielli added.

Pope Francis created over 100 cardinals, including those from developing countries.

"Christ is to be found at the margins," Gabrielli said.

During a conclave, cardinals vote through a secret ballot. A two-thirds majority is required for the election. After each round of submissions, ballots are read aloud and then burned. The ashes are used to notify audiences around the world and onlookers in St. Peter’s Square of the election’s status.

POPE FRANCIS EMPHASIZED CATHOLICISM GLOBALLY, REACHED BEYOND US, EUROPE INTO IMPOVERISHED NATIONS

Black smoke from the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican indicates a new round of voting is set to happen. White smoke signals a new leader of the Roman Catholic Church is selected.

The secret process, which takes as long as needed, is vastly different from U.S. presidential, local and even mayoral elections. However, the unique election process doesn’t prevent people from drawing comparisons between the most "papabile" cardinals and U.S. political parties–Republican and Democrat.

"It's very tempting to map folks into our political categories," Gabrielli said. "Those just don't work very well in the Church. There are different emphases and priorities."

"This is a very, very different process," he added.

The College of Cardinals elected Pope Francis in 2013 when he was 76 years old. At the time, the former pontiff was not considered one of the top cardinal contenders.

Some Catholics regarded the former leader of the Church as "non-traditional" and often criticized his sometimes progressive approach to world leadership.

POPE FRANCIS TO LIE IN STATE, MOURNERS WELCOME: WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE PONTIFF'S FUNERAL

During his 12-year papacy, Pope Francis’ took affinity to the expansion of equality in the Catholic Church, which included pathways for divorced Catholics and blessings for same-sex couples.

"My read is that he had certain particular processes and structures that he was very interested in setting into motion, like the work on synodality more recently," Gabrielli said.

Pope Francis also drove conversation around climate change. His emphasis on environmental protection followed suit with Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II before him.

"He was kind of picking up that momentum," Gabrielli said. "There's really a thread you see happening there."

Presently, there are 252 living cardinals. However, only top members of the church under the age of 80 are eligible to vote. A maximum of 120 cardinal electors make up the voting college.

The limit was set by Pope John Paul VI in 1975.

"I think it's possible that someone could be seen as close to Pope Francis," Gabrielli said of the next pope. "I think it's possible for someone to be elected who has a different set of priorities than Pope Francis."

Two popes . . . Francis and John Paul II . . . their deaths separated by almost exactly twenty years. Both world-renowned figures and similar in personal approach . . . but the two were different, as well. I had the honor of covering both.  

The news of the death of Pope Francis came just as I was returning to London from a long Easter weekend in the States. While Francis had been seriously ill, he also seemed to be on the mend, so his quick and quiet death at his modest apartment in the Santa Marta guesthouse caught many by surprise. A planned "catnap" by me at home turned into a quick dash to our UK studio. 

In a series of "live shots," I talked about a man who seemed so familiar to all. They called him the "People’s Pope." And no wonder. The first from the Americas. For 12 years a champion of the downtrodden, victims of war, hunger and poverty. Taking on big global issues like inequality and global warming. Tangling, with degrees of success, with issues inside the Roman Catholic Church like sex abuse and the roles of women and gays. All with a personal, humble and humorous touch.   

FOX NEWS TO AIR SPECIAL LIVE COVERAGE OF POPE FRANCIS' FUNERAL ON SATURDAY

And at the same time, in my mind, there were memories of the passing of Pope John Paul II. I was there in Vatican City on a chilly night in April 2005, reporting with the Fox News team. The pope was literally on his deathbed in his Apostolic Palace apartment overlooking St. Peter’s Square, where tens of thousands had gathered in a mass vigil. And then the lights went out.

We detailed, too, that night, the life of this man who had captured the spirit of the world. A strong voice for freedom and democracy. Who had played a big role in bringing down communism in his homeland of Poland and elsewhere. John Paul II tried to bring the world together as he kept church rulings in line. I had covered him for 26 years, starting as a "cub" producer at his conclave in 1978.

After both deaths, the same words were used by Vatican officials to describe the "trip" the Popes took on those fateful days: "He has returned to the house of his father."

The passing of a pope is just the beginning of a lengthy process when the Vatican turns over the keys to the church of 1.3 billion global followers to a new leader. A massive ceremony-laden funeral is then followed by the drama of the selection of a new pope, the conclave with its black smoke for no decision . . . white smoke for a new Pope. And then their inauguration. 

The cardinals who gathered in the wake of the passing of John Paul II chose Pope Benedict XVI a more conservative and more elderly leader than they’d picked before. He would only serve for eight years. His resignation (he died in 2022) paved the way for another conclave, which chose the Argentinian Pope Francis. 

POPE FRANCIS REVEALED BURIAL WISHES JUST DAYS AFTER BECOMING POPE IN 2013

Both John Paul II and Francis were thought to be long-shot outsiders. Speculation is now building about the choice to be made in the upcoming papal "election." Will it return the papacy to Italian dominance or spread its reach to a new country and continent? Will the new pope revive a more conservative approach to the church or stay in the modern spirit of Francis?

The coming days will tell.

Many of us carry our own reminders of those who have passed. In my case, literally. In 2005, a Vatican insider gave me rosary beads blessed by John Paul II. I’ve kept them with me on all my sometimes-rough travels since. From Afghanistan and Iraq . . . to the Mideast and Ukraine.

I also keep with me the memory of my late mother. She was a big fan of the Polish pontiff. She died of Lou Gehrig’s disease, or ALS, which ravages the body. Similar to some of the effects of Parkinson’s disease that contributed to John Paul II’s death. 

Born of humble stock, I know Mom would also have liked the simple faith of Pope Francis. And how he passed. There are some who say he held off his "departure" until the Monday after the events of Easter, so as not to spoil that most holy day in the Roman Catholic calendar.    

Just like some in my family think, my mother held off her passing until the day after my April birthday. Considerate of others to the end.

Rest in Peace Francis.  Although I’m sure you’ll have a lot of catching up to do with all your friends "upstairs"!

President Donald Trump apparently pushed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Gaza during their latest conversation. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he told Netanyahu "You’ve got to be good to Gaza" because the people there "are suffering."

"There's a very big need for food and medicine, and we're taking care of it," Trump told reporters. Trump also noted that Netanyahu "felt well" about the push to get more aid into Gaza.

WITH TRUMP'S BACKING ISRAEL PUSHES DEEPER INTO GAZA AS PRESSURE BUILDS FOR HOSTAGE DEAL

This message seems to mark a departure from the more aggressive stance he has taken in the past. Before he returned to office, Trump warned Hamas there would be "hell to pay" if the hostages were not released. In February, when Netanyahu visited the White House, Trump suggested that the U.S. take over the Strip and turn it into a "riviera." 

A few days after Netanyahu’s visit to the White House, Trump said Israel should "let all hell break out" if Hamas failed to release all remaining hostages by the U.S. president’s noon deadline. Hamas did not free the hostages, but Israel held off on resuming the war until March 18. Before ground operations restarted, 33 hostages were freed. 

TRUMP: WE'RE WORKING REALLY HARD TO GET THE HOSTAGES OUT OF GAZA

Aid trucks have not entered Gaza since March 2, and there has been international uproar over the growing crisis inside the Strip. While Trump is seemingly pushing Netanyahu to change his approach to Gaza, Israel has said it would not let aid enter the Strip until the remaining hostages are released.

There is concern and frustration in Israel over allegations that aid has gone to Hamas terrorists instead of the people of Gaza. In November 2024, the Associated Press reported that prices in Gaza skyrocketed after nearly 100 trucks of food and humanitarian aid were looted by armed men. 

While speaking to the United Nations Security Council, freed Hamas hostage Eli Sharabi said his captors often had boxes of supplies with U.N. logos on them in the tunnels. Sharabi, who weighed just 97 pounds when he was released, said the hostages were starved while "Hamas eats link kings."

The Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), an Israeli agency, said that when the hostage deal was in place, 25,200 trucks entered Gaza carrying 447,538 tons of humanitarian aid.

Pope Francis, 88, was recently diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia, and as concerned Catholics around the world pray for the Holy Father, the Vatican revealed last week that he will remain hospitalized for treatment.

The popes of the last 100 years have seen their fair share of political divides and controversy, from pontiffs breaking centuries-old practices to backlash over the Vatican's response to Hilter's regime to the teachings of God's love and grace and traveling the world to reach the sick and lonely; 

Before Pope Francis was elected by the College of Cardinals in 2013, Pope Benedict XVI, born Joseph Ratzinger, led the Catholic Church from 2005-2013.

POPE FRANCIS GOT OUT OF BED TO EAT BREAKFAST ON 7TH DAY IN HOSPITAL: VATICAN

Ratzinger was born in Bavaria, Germany. Upon witnessing horrific acts during the Nazi regime, he desired to commit to the church at a young age. Ratzinger and his family experienced abuse and punishment at the hands of the Nazi Party. Despite his resolute disdain for the regime, at 14 years old he was required by law to join the Hitler Youth, a paramilitary organization.

During his enrollment in the seminary, Ratzinger was drafted into World War II, putting his theological teachings on hold. He was captured and held as a prisoner of war by Americans for several months. Upon his release, he left the military and was ordained in 1951 alongside his brother.

Ratzinger was elected pope in 2005 and, during his papacy he preached a message of God's eternal love, encouraged Catholics to remain faithful to God, and implored the presence of love, joy and truth in life.

Citing health concerns, Benedict, in 2013, was the first pontiff to resign the papacy in 600 years.

He died at 95 years old in 2022.

POPE FRANCIS WILL REMAIN IN HOSPITAL, VATICAN SAYS

Pope John Paul II, born Karol Wojtyła, was elected pope on Oct. 16, 1978. He was the first Polish pontiff.

Wojtyła took the regnal name after his predecessor, Pope John Paul I, who passed away only a month into his reign as the sovereign of Vatican City.

Wojtyła's election by the College of Cardinals marked the first time a non-Italian would serve as pope in over 400 years. At 58 years old, Wojtyła was one of the youngest popes in history.

Wojtyla studied theology in Rome and served as the archbishop of Krakow. Through his 26-year pontificate, John Paul II traveled to 129 countries, becoming the most traveled pope in history.

POPE FRANCIS DIAGNOSED WITH BILATERAL PNEUMONIA, VATICAN SAYS

During his papacy, John Paul II preached service, the responsibility for peace and the protection of life. In 1981, a lone gunman, Mehmet Ali Ağca, attempted to assassinate the pope in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. He was struck twice while riding in an open car and seriously wounded. He was rushed to Gemelli Hospital in Rome and treated for his injuries.

John Paul II later visited Ağca in prison and forgave the shooter in person.

In 2005, John Paul died in his apartment in the Vatican at 84 years old. He was canonized as a saint in 2014.

Pope John Paul I, born Albino Luciani, was elected as pope on Aug. 26, 1978. His reign as the sovereign of Vatican City was brief, as he died 33 days later.

He was ordained in 1935, appointed bishop in 1958 and created archbishop of Venice in 1969. He is often referred to as "the Smiling Pope."

Pope Paul VI was born Giovanni Battista Montini in Brescia, Italy. He was elected as pontiff in 1963 after being appointed archbishop of Milan.

During his papacy, Montini concluded three sessions of the Second Vatican Council, a significant renewal of the Catholic Church. The official documents marked a milestone in the church and condemned antisemitism. 

WARTIME LETTER SHOWS POPE PIUS XII MAY HAVE KNOWN ABOUT HOLOCAUST EARLIER THAN PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT

Montini traveled to the Holy Land in the Middle East, India, Uganda, the Philippines and parts of the United States during his reign.

In 2018, Pope Paul VI was canonized as a saint. He was recognized as a strong leader, and his efforts to build stronger bonds among other religions are cited as just one of the reasons for his canonization.

Pope Paul VI died in 1978 at 80 years old.

Pope John XXIII, born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, was born into a family of 13 children in Sotto il Monte, Italy.

In 1892, Roncalli entered the seminary. He was ordained in 1904, and was named a cardinal and the patriarch of Venice in 1953.

CATHOLIC CHURCH BEATIFIES POLISH FAMILY WHO SHELTERED JEWS DURING WWII: ‘PAID THE HIGHEST PRICE OF MARTYRDOM’

As pontiff, Roncalli convened the Second Vatican Council, which modernized the Catholic Church by renewing liturgy and theology and developing better relationships with other religions.

Pope John XXIII died of cancer in 1963 and was canonized as a saint along with John Paul II in 2014.

Pope Pius XII, born Eugenio Pacelli, was an Italian cardinal before being elected pope on his 63rd birthday in 1939.

Pope Pius XI named Pacelli a cardinal after a one-day conclave among the College of Cardinals in 1929.

Pacelli was pope during World War II and through the Holocaust. Correspondence from Vatican archives shows Pacelli received word of the atrocities happening against Jewish people in Germany, and he often received pleas to help Jews.

POPE: VATICAN NEXT YEAR TO OPEN ARCHIVES ON WARTIME PIUS XII

Pope Pius XII has been intensely criticized for what has been called his lack of support for Jews during World War II, but the Vatican has remained steadfast in his defense.

Pius XII died in 1958 at 82 years old.

Pope Pius XI, born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, was ordained a priest in 1879. He was named a cardinal and archbishop of Milan in 1921 by Pope Benedict XV and elected pope in 1922.

Benito Mussolini, the Italian dictator, came to power in 1922. The Lateran Treaty signed by Mussolini and the papacy acknowledged papal sovereignty over the Vatican City, making the state a neutral territory and the pope politically independent.

Pius XI died in 1939 at 81 years old.

World leaders and mourners gathered in the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday.

Among his historical achievements as both the first pontiff from the Global South and the first born outside of Europe in over a millennia, Pope Francis is remembered in the days following his death as "the People’s Pope".

The political characteristics of his sometimes controversial papacy were dedicated to environmental protection, supporting overlooked Catholic communities and compounding equality in the church.

"[The People’s Pope] is absolutely the best way to describe him," Jana Bennett, professor and chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Dayton in Ohio, told Fox News Digital.

POPE FRANCIS REVEALED BURIAL WISHES JUST DAYS AFTER BECOMING POPE IN 2013

Theology experts, Catholics and critics around the world are mourning the loss of Pope Francis, 88, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina, and dissecting his papacy.

Pope Francis died on Monday, April 21, 2025, after battling bilateral pneumonia in the months preceding his death.

"Even as pope, he wanted to be treated as an ordinary person," Bennett said. "I think it’s evident in the way that he wants to be buried."

Pope Francis selected the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, a cherished familiar holy place, as his final resting place just days after being elected pope in 2013. Separate from the leaders of the Holy See before him, Pope Francis chose one coffin versus three, made of wood, to be laid out as faithful pay their respects.

THEOLOGIAN ON ‘CONCLAVE’ ACCURACY, EXPECTATIONS FOR NEXT SECRETIVE EVENT AFTER POPE FRANCIS' DEATH

The former pontiff released declarations and documents throughout his papacy which pointed to advancements for the betterment of both everyday Catholics and non-Catholics. He urged the faithful to have hope and seek mercy all the time, especially through the sacrament of confession.

"He believed that everybody should be hopeful," Bennett said. "That we should hope in God and that there is always hope available, even in the darkest of times, for new life and for something new on the horizon."

She added that Pope Francis preached a path forward, even for the most egregious sinners.

"I saw the way he interacted," Bennett told Fox News Digital. "Even in the Popemobile he would try to bless people and talk with them. It was about the way he responded to common people."

POPE FRANCIS TO LIE IN STATE, MOURNERS WELCOME: WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE PONTIFF'S FUNERAL

"I think that you can't understand Pope Francis' papacy without attending to the very direct one-on-one way that he would reach out to people," she said. "From the little baby that he would bless in the square to people with disabilities. He granted audiences with just a range of people; both people who were the most impoverished to people among the most powerful."

During his 12-year papacy, Pope Francis met with many world leaders, including President Donald Trump, Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles III, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"I think to him, everyone is deserving of a blessing," Bennett said.

Among vocational and merciful acts of service, Pope Francis would wash and kiss the feet of men, women and children, including those of prison inmates, during an annual Holy Thursday ritual.

POPE FRANCIS EMPHASIZED CATHOLICISM GLOBALLY, REACHED BEYOND US, EUROPE INTO IMPOVERISHED NATIONS

"He changed the way we think about service to others and service to all and who is worthy of being served by a pope and respected by a pope," Bennett said.

Pope Francis was the first pope to take the name of St. Francis of Assisi, well-known for his call for engagement with the impoverished, love of creation and the Church.

"I think all of those things showed up in Pope Francis’ papacy," Bennett said.

Born in Buenos Aires, Pope Francis applied his world leadership to underscore care and concern for people at the margins, specifically in areas that lacked an abundance of clergy.

"He also had a strong awareness of the global nature of the church," Bennett said. "He had a way of responding to people from different countries, different continents. He was a very sharp politician. He was especially aware of the financial corruption at the Vatican, and he was able to respond to that."

Pope Francis instituted reforms to ensure charitable and reputable business practices at the Vatican Bank.

"He surrounded himself with advisors," Bennett said.

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met face-to-face for the first time since their infamous Oval Office spat in February. They were attending Pope Francis’ funeral in Rome, though it is unclear exactly when they met.

Neither Ukrainian nor White House officials gave many details on the meeting; however, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said the leaders had "a very productive discussion."

ZELENSKYY SPEAKS OUT AFTER PUBLIC SPAT WITH TRUMP, VANCE, SAYS DUSTUP 'BAD FOR BOTH SIDES'

Zelenskyy later tweeted that the meeting was "very symbolic" and could potentially be "historic."

In February, Zelenskyy abruptly left the White House after getting into an argument with Trump and Vice President JD Vance. Zelenskyy later told Fox News chief political anchor Bret Baier on "Special Report" that the incident was "bad for both sides."

This meeting comes as peace talks between Russia and Ukraine appear to be at a standstill with Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin making competing demands.

"A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine. They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to ‘finish it off.’ Most of the major points are agreed to. Stop the bloodshed, NOW. We will be wherever is necessary to help facilitate the END to this cruel and senseless war," Trump wrote on Truth Social after arriving in Rome on Saturday.

TRUMP SAYS 'INFLAMMATORY' ZELENSKYY STATEMENT ON CRIMEA PROLONGS WAR WITH RUSSIA

Trump has criticized both leaders in separate posts on Truth Social. On Thursday, Trump demanded Putin "stop" strikes on Kyiv and said he was "not happy" with the Kremlin for continuing attacks on Ukraine. The day before, on Wednesday, Trump blasted Zelenskyy after he said that Ukraine would not recognize Russian control over Crimea, which Putin invaded in 2014.

Putin so far has rejected several U.S. proposals for a peace deal, but the White House remains optimistic about Trump’s ability to end the war.

TRUMP TELLS PUTIN 'STOP' AFTER DEADLY RUSSIAN STRIKES ON KYIV

"This war is endable. Both sides just have to agree to it," Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday. He also said there were "good meetings over the weekend," which were presumably focused on ending the conflict.

Trump has said that he is sticking to his own "deadline" for achieving peace and added that he believes there is "a very good chance of getting [a deal] done."

Pope Francis’ emphasis on reaching out to the "peripheries" of the Catholic Church and world will result in the most diverse collection of church leaders in history gathering to select the new pope. 

According to Mary FioRito, an expert on papal elections and a senior fellow at the Catholic Association, this could very well result in the next pope having a very different set of priorities than the late pontiff. 

Francis has selected about 80% of the 135 church leaders – called cardinals – who will vote for the next pope in the upcoming papal conclave.

The result will be that instead of being dominated by European or even Western cardinals, the conclave will have large contingents from regions like Africa and Asia.

WHAT IS THE PAPAL CONCLAVE: INSIDE THE ANCIENT PROCESS OF CHOOSING THE NEXT POPE

"This will be the most diverse conclave in the history of the church," FioRito said.

But this diversity could spell a departure from some of the defining focuses of Francis’ pontificate, such as his emphasis on "synodality," that is, gatherings of small groups from around the world to discuss questions of theology and church practice.

FioRito sees this next conclave, which she said will likely begin May 5, as a question of whether the next pope will be a man who continues Francis’ legacy or shifts the church’s focus to problems like persecution and poverty, which are major issues in countries like Nigeria, Pakistan and India.

In Nigeria alone, where about half of the population is Christian, 3,100 Christians were killed and 2,830 were kidnapped in 2024, according a report by international religious freedom watchdog Open Doors. 

BISHOP BARRON REACTS TO DEATH OF POPE FRANCIS, PRAISES PAPACY MARKED BY 'MERCY AND EVANGELIZATION'

In this sense, FioRito predicted that the African cardinals, who now form a significant voting bloc in the conclave, will play a major role in selecting the next pope.

She explained that the African church has a very different set of priorities, which have been shaped in large part by the realities of rapid growth coupled with intense persecution.

"We're concerned about things like climate change, and they're concerned about not being locked in a church and set on fire," she explained. "They're not sitting around at these tables for 10 discussing great ideas. They just want to make sure their kid gets to school without getting shot and they can pay their rent this month."

With that will come a desire to select a pope who will respect the African church as an equal and who will stand against "ideological colonization" from the West with concepts like climate change, abortion and gender ideology.

TRUMP, WORLD LEADERS REACT TO THE DEATH OF POPE FRANCIS

"The cardinals in Africa are very sensitive to this kind of ideological colonization where they're not being colonized in the traditional way, but the ideas of the West are coming in and attempting to change African culture with Western ideas without listening to the people first," she said.

With this in mind, FioRito pointed to Hungarian Cardinal Péter Erdő, who at 71 is young enough to be selected and is seen by many as a "John Paul II-type personality." He is respected by both the Pope Francis synodality camps as well as the African bishops.

Another candidate, FioRito said, who could possibly "bridge the gap" between the different worlds is American-born Cardinal Robert Prevost, who currently serves as the president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. However, FioRito noted that Prevost may be less likely if cardinals "don't want to see so much of the world's power concentrated in the United States."

FioRito also predicted issues of modernity versus tradition, which have spelled some of the most significant controversies during Francis’ pontificate in the West, will also play a factor.

WHO COULD BE THE NEXT POPE?

She said that amid a general decline in faith in the West, there has been a palpable shift in young people embracing more traditional forms of worship in the church, such as the traditional Latin Mass.

"That's where the 20-somethings are going to Mass," she said. "In a world where there's so much crassness and vulgarity, you have something here that's timeless and just kind of transports you to another world."

Despite this, she said the issue of the traditional Latin Mass is more of a "niche liturgical issue that I don't think is going to have much impact."

FioRito noted that, unlike political elections, the selection of the next pope is less about a set of issues or policies, but instead is more about the man himself.

5 WAYS POPE FRANCIS IMPACTED THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

"I wouldn't phrase it in terms of issues, as if we're talking about the economy or migration. We're looking at individual men and asking ourselves, who can serve the church best at this moment and who is the person best equipped to take on this international role?" she said.

"The holy father's role is to be a center of unity for the church in preaching the message and the gospel," FioRito went on. "So, it's looking at individual people, their strengths, their weaknesses, their backgrounds, what limitations they might have. And then really, in a very prayerful way, asking, what does the church need now in a new pope?"

"My sense of it," she went on, "I think the cardinals need to be looking at the church today globally and not just in their own backyards, but globally and saying, ‘Who is the man who can best take the church forward into this new era?'" 

Iran and the U.S. began negotiations in Oman on Saturday over Tehran's advancing nuclear program, and the talks will likely depend on the Islamic Republic's enrichment of uranium.

According to Iranian state media, the talks began on Saturday in Oman's capital of Muscat. But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff offered no immediate details on the talks.

Araghchi arrived on Friday in Oman and met with Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who had mediated the two earlier rounds of talks in Muscat and Rome. Araghchi was seen heading to the talks late Saturday morning.

TRUMP SAYS HE'LL BE 'LEADING THE PACK' TO WAR WITH IRAN IF DEAL PROSPECTS WHITHER AWAY

Witkoff arrived on Saturday for the talks that were expected to begin in the coming hours.

The negotiations seek to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the U.S. lifting some economic sanctions it has imposed on the Islamic Republic.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to launch airstrikes targeting Iran’s program if a deal is not reached. Iranian officials warn that they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.

Iran's nuclear deal in 2015 with foreign nations limited Tehran's program before Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in 2018, leading to years of conflict and tensions.

Trump reiterated that he hoped negotiations would lead to a new nuclear deal, although he still suggested the possibility of a military strike if a deal was not reached.

"The Iran situation is coming out very well," Trump said on Air Force One as he traveled to Rome for Pope Francis' funeral. "We've had a lot of talks with them and I think we're going to have a deal. I'd much rather have a deal than the other alternative. That would be good for humanity."

FETTERMAN CALLS FOR BOMBING IRANIAN NUCLEAR FACILITIES: 'WASTE THAT S---'

"There are some people that want to make a different kind of a deal — a much nastier deal — and I don’t want that to happen to Iran if we can avoid it," he added.

The funeral for Pope Francis, who was 88 years old when he died on April 21, is expected to be widely attended by not only the faithful, who are expected to travel worldwide for the event, but also by world leaders. 

Some 130 delegations confirmed they will travel to Rome for the funeral at St. Peter's Basilica, including roughly 50 heads of state and at least another 10 world leaders.

President Donald Trump will travel with his wife, first lady Melania Trump, who is a Roman Catholic, for the funeral in a show of respect despite the fact the president and the pope at times butted heads. 

Neither Vice President JD Vance, who visited the pope on the eve of his death, nor his wife, Usha, are expected to be at the funeral. 

Former President Joe Biden is expected to be in attendance, according to Italian media reports.

TRUMP WILL ATTEND POPE FRANCIS' FUNERAL IN ROME DESPITE CONTENTIOUS PAST: 'LOOK FORWARD TO BEING THERE!'

Just as his father, now-King Charles III, represented the late Queen Elizabeth II at the funeral of Pope John Paul II in 2005, the eldest son and next in line for the throne, Prince William, will attend the funeral on Saturday.

His family is not expected to be with him, though Prime Minister Kier Starmer is expected to attend the pontiff’s funeral.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reportedly canceled travel plans to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan so she could attend the pope’s funeral. 

In a tribute to Pope Francis posted on social media the day he died, Meloni said, "I had the privilege of enjoying his friendship, his advice, his teachings, which never ceased, not even during times of trial and suffering."

MILEI, POPE FRANCIS EMBRACE IN ROME DESPITE PAST INSULTS

Javier Milei, president of Pope Francis’ native country of Argentina, confirmed he would make the journey to pay his respects to the man of whom he was often critical.

In a statement issued after the pope's death, Milei said, "Despite differences that seem minor today, having been able to know him in his goodness and wisdom was a true honor for me."

Ireland, a Catholic nation, will be represented by both President Michael Higgins and Prime Minister Martin for the pontiff’s funeral.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed he will attend Pope Francis’ funeral at St. Peter’s Basilica, and in a tribute to the pontiff, he said, "We remember his prayers for peace in Ukraine. Our state will be represented in Rome at the farewell ceremony this coming Saturday."

Zelenskyy last visited the pope in October 2024.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed she will attend the pope’s funeral in what will mark the first event she and Trump have attended since he took office.

Many other world leaders are expected to attend, though notably leaders from adversarial nations like Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, as well as leaders of nations the pope was critical of over human rights concerns, like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will not be in attendance on Saturday.

Pope Francis’ funeral will be held on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. local Rome time (4:00 a.m. ET) and more than 200,000 people are expected to attend the deceased Vicar of Christ’s services.

Thousands of mourners have taken to the Vatican this week to pay their final respects to Pope Francis following his death on Monday.

The funeral Mass will be held on the parvis of St. Peter’s Basilica, and His Most Reverend Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the Catholic rites and blessings.

Mass will begin with an Entrance Antiphon, typically sung or recited by clergy and mourners.

FOX NEWS TO AIR SPECIAL LIVE COVERAGE OF POPE FRANCIS' FUNERAL ON SATURDAY

Then, the congregation will acknowledge their sins with the Penitential Act followed by the Collect, or opening prayer.

Cardinal Battista will then extend the First Reading, a reading from the Acts of the Apostles, to the congregation of worshipers.

The Responsorial Psalm "The Lord is my Shepherd," or "Psalm 23," is to be sung. The Second Reading, a reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians, typically recited by an instituted lector at a pope’s funeral, will be heard among parishioners.

The Acclamation and the Gospel will follow.

Cardinal Battista will give the Homily, a reflection, which includes prayer for Pope Francis, the faithful departed and the congregation. The dean of the Roman Catholic Church's College of Cardinals will consecrate the Body and Blood of Christ and invite the faithful to receive Holy Communion following the Communion Rite, or the Our Father prayer.

THEOLOGIAN ON ‘CONCLAVE’ ACCURACY, EXPECTATIONS FOR NEXT SECRETIVE EVENT AFTER POPE FRANCIS' DEATH

Requiem Aeternam, a chant often heard among funeral-goers, is to be recited during Communion, followed by a prayer.

Cardinal Battista will offer a final Commendation and Farewell including the Prayer of the Church in Rome and the Prayer of Eastern Churches.

The funeral liturgy "I Know That My Redeemer Lives" will be sung or chanted by the congregation, and Mass will conclude with the Canticle of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Pope Francis will be buried in a wooden casket at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, a place he often visited with flowers during his 12-year papacy.

POPE FRANCIS EMPHASIZED CATHOLICISM GLOBALLY, REACHED BEYOND US, EUROPE INTO IMPOVERISHED NATIONS

The Novendiali, an ancient and customary nine-day period of prayer, remembrance and mourning, will begin on the day of Pope Francis’ funeral on the parvis of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Pope Francis’ Holy Mass led by His Most Reverend Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will commence the nine Masses in memory of the deceased pontiff.

While the Masses are open to public audiences, they are specifically held for employees and faithful of Vatican City.

The schedule is as follows, according to the Vatican:

POPE FRANCIS TO LIE IN STATE, MOURNERS WELCOME: WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE PONTIFF'S FUNERAL

Indian and Pakistani soldiers briefly exchanged fire along their highly militarized frontier in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, Indian officials said Friday, as tensions soared between the nuclear-armed rivals following a deadly attack on tourists.

India has described the massacre in which gunmen killed 26 people, most of them Indian, as a "terror attack" and accused Pakistan of backing it. Pakistan denied any connection to the attack near the resort town of Pahalgam in India-controlled Kashmir. It was claimed by a previously unknown militant group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance.

INDIA VOWS TO HUNT TERRORISTS ‘TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH’ AS TENSIONS WITH PAKISTAN RISE AFTER KASHMIR ATTACK

With the region on edge, three Indian army officials said that Pakistani soldiers fired at an Indian position in Kashmir late Thursday. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with departmental policy, said Indian soldiers retaliated and no casualties were reported.

Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on the report.

Tensions rise

Tuesday’s attack in Kashmir was the worst assault in years targeting civilians in the restive region. Since then, tensions have risen dangerously between India and Pakistan, which have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, which is split between them and claimed by both in its entirety.

On Wednesday, India suspended a crucial water-sharing treaty that has withstood two wars between the countries and closed their only functional land border crossing. A day later, India revoked all visas issued to Pakistani nationals with effect from Sunday.

Pakistan responded angrily that it has nothing to do with the attack, and canceled visas issued to Indian nationals, closed its airspace for all Indian-owned or Indian-operated airlines and suspended all trade with India. Nationals from both sides began heading back to their home countries through the Wagah border near Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore on Friday.

Islamabad also warned that any Indian attempt to stop or divert the flow of water would be considered an "act of war." The suspension of the water treaty could lead to water shortages at a time when parts of Pakistan are already struggling with drought and declining rainfall.

Pakistan has also warned it could suspend the Simla Agreement — in what would be a major and worrying step. The peace treaty signed after the 1971 India-Pakistan war established the Line of Control, a highly militarized de facto border that divides Kashmir between the countries.

The United Nations has urged India and Pakistan "to exercise maximum restraint and to ensure that the situation and the developments we’ve seen do not deteriorate any further."

"Any issues between Pakistan and India, we believe can be and should be resolved peacefully, through meaningful, mutual engagement," the statement said Friday.

India and Pakistan each administer a part of Kashmir. New Delhi describes all militancy there as Pakistan-backed terrorism. Pakistan denies this, and many Muslim Kashmiris consider the militants to be part of a home-grown freedom struggle.

Residents and police in southern Kashmir said Indian soldiers detonated explosives in the family homes of two suspected militants they accused of being involved in Tuesday’s attack. In the past, Indian troops have demolished homes as a way to punish militancy in Kashmir.

Authorities say they are investigating two local men and two Pakistani nationals for their alleged involvement in the attack. Officials have not elaborated or shared any evidence.

"He left home three years ago. We haven’t seen him since and nothing was ever recovered from this house despite multiple raids," said Afroza, the aunt of one of the local men accused, Asif Sheikh. The blast partially damaged the house in Monghama village that she shares with Sheikh's parents and two sisters, including blowing out its windows. It also shattered windowpanes of several other homes.

"Even if he had done the attack, why blow up the house of a poor family," Afroza, who like many women in Kashmir uses only one name, said as she wailed.

A police official and two residents in Guree village said a house there was also targeted by soldiers. The official insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with media while the two villagers feared reprisals from authorities.

Protesters take to the streets

Also Friday, hundreds of people rallied in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, to denounce the suspension of the water-sharing treaty.

The demonstrators chanted slogans against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and burned his effigy before dispersing peacefully. Similar small rallies were also held elsewhere.

Pakistan’s Senate condemned the attack, while passing a resolution denouncing New Delhi’s attempt to link Islamabad to it and the suspension of the water treaty.

Hundreds of demonstrators also took to streets in India’s capital of New Delhi, where most markets were shut in protest against the killings. They demanded action against Pakistan.

"Now our patience has run out," protester Surekha Sharma said. "Now we want revenge for this."

President Donald Trump’s patience is being tested by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched a barrage of airstrikes on the Ukrainian capital city of Kyiv, killing 12 people and injuring nearly 100 more this week, one day ahead of Special Envoy Steve Witkoff’s fourth visit to Moscow.

Trump told reporters Friday he believes it is "possible" and even "very probable" his administration will negotiate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. 

"I think, in the end, we're going to end up with a lot of good deals, including tariff deals and trade deals. We're going to make our country rich," Trump said ahead of his departure for Rome. "We're going to try and get out of war so that we can save 5,000 people a week. That's what my aim is."

TRUMP'S 'STOP' MESSAGE TO PUTIN ECHOES BIDEN'S 'DON'T' FROM 2022

Trump repeated that he has no deadline for a deal, only that one must be ironed out "as fast as possible."

He made his comments one week after the U.S. threatened to abandon talks if Russia and Ukraine didn’t soon reach a deal and one day after Trump issued a direct message to Putin on social media to "stop" bombing Ukraine. 

"I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5,000 soldiers a week are dying. Let’s get the peace deal DONE," he wrote. 

Trump also conceded that his repeated claims from the campaign trail that he would have the war in Ukraine stopped within 24 hours of taking office were not based on realistic goals but were "figurative."

"I said that as an exaggeration," he told reporters, again blaming the war on his predecessor, President Biden.

But it appears Trump’s verbal warnings to Putin have fallen on deaf ears, similar to the results of Biden’s verbal warnings. Trump has repeatedly accused Biden of being partly at fault for the war, though he has not explained why. 

Former Moscow CIA Station Chief Dan Hoffman said he and other security experts repeatedly warned that, under the Biden administration, Ukraine was not sufficiently armed to adequately take on Russia. 

"After failing to deter Putin's invasion, the Biden administration just kept Ukraine in the fight but didn't give Ukraine a chance to punch back fast enough or hard enough," he said.

"There are three options," Hoffman added, explaining how the U.S. can use its position as leverage over Moscow. "One, entice Russia. That's what Trump is trying to do with trade deals and eliminating sanctions. And Putin has kind of plowed through that by rejecting confidence-building ceasefire deals.

TRUMP INSISTS UKRAINE-RUSSIA PEACE DEAL IS CLOSE, BUT MISTRUST IN PUTIN LEAVES EXPERTS SKEPTICAL

"The second option is to make Putin pay on the battlefield so that he feels so much pain he has to stop the invasion," he added. "We convince Putin that we're going to rearm Ukraine by saying, 'We've offered you a great deal. You don't want the deal, we're going to arm the Ukrainians.

"The third option is to just walk away and let Europe fend for themselves and support Ukraine as much as they can. We would run the risk that Russia would take more territory from Ukraine. That would be a victory for Russia and its allies – China, North Korea and Iran.

"Let them do it, and then you'll pay the price everywhere else in the world," Hoffman warned, referring to China's threats against Taiwan. "Americans don't like to fight wars. OK, we don't like to lose wars either."

NATO CHIEF SENDS MESSAGE TO RUSSIA: YOU 'ARE NOT WINNING THIS’

An official with knowledge of the talks told Fox News Digital Friday that "Ambassador Witkoff is in Russia to meet with President Putin as part of President Trump's efforts to make peace. 

"It's long past time for the death and destruction to stop, to move past the failed strategies of the past and for an end to this devastating conflict," the official added without commenting on the "substance of negotiations."

A report by Axios this week suggested the White House had extended a "final offer" to Ukraine and Russia that called on Kyiv to recognize Russia's occupation of nearly all the Luhansk region and the occupied areas of the Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions.

It also said the U.S. would agree to recognize Crimea, which Putin illegally seized from Ukraine in 2014, as now legally a part of Russia, and that Washington would lift sanctions. 

Neither the White House nor the National Security Council responded to Fox News Digital’s repeated questions about whether there will be consequences for Putin should he fail to enter into an agreement with Ukraine.

The administration also did not comment on why it believes Putin wants to enter into an agreement with the U.S. when security officials have repeatedly warned otherwise. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has already said he will not acknowledge Crimea as a part of Russia but rather as Ukrainian land illegally occupied by Russia.

Zelenskyy also on Thursday posted a 2018 "Crimea declaration" by Trump's first-term Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, which said, "No country can change the borders of another by force" in a move to signify Trump’s apparent position change that now favors Russia.