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All To Know Ahead Of Conclave To Elect New Pope

Published

4 months ago

April 29, 2025

Cardinals from around the world will meet under Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel on May 7 to elect a new leader of the Catholic Church after Pope Francis’s death.

Dating back to the Middle Ages — when the idea of sovereigns being elected was somewhat revolutionary — the gathering, known as a conclave, has an air of mystery about it, as all participants are sworn to secrecy for life.

Here is what we know about the process:

•⁠ ⁠Where and when –

On Monday May 5, two days before the conclave, officials and staff taking part in the conclave will gather at 5:30 pm (1530 GMT) to sign an oath of secrecy.

The day itself, Wednesday May 7, will begin with a special mass at 10:00 am in St Peter’s Basilica.

The conclave begins at 4:30 pm following a prayer in the Vatican’s Pauline Chapel.

Cardinals will walk in procession to the Sistine Chapel before taking their oath of secrecy.

The conclave will last until a new pontiff is elected.

Cardinals wear different garments depending on whether they are from the Latin or Eastern churches.

Those in the Latin Church will don a “red robe with sash, rochet, mozzetta, pectoral cross with red and gold cord, ring, zucchetto (cap) and biretta”, while those in the Eastern Church wear their “own choir dress”, the Vatican said.

Each cardinal will wear an accreditation badge around his neck to help identify them as electors.

While it took almost three years to appoint Pope Gregory X in the 13th century — the longest conclave to date — modern gatherings are usually a matter of days.

Both Francis and his predecessor, Benedict XVI, were elected after two days of voting.

•⁠ ⁠Who takes part –

Only 133 of the Church’s 252 cardinals are expected to take part in the conclave, as only those aged under 80 are eligible to vote for a new pope.

There are 135 eligible voters but the Vatican announced on Tuesday that two cardinals had dropped out for health reasons.

The archdiocese of Valencia in Spain confirmed to AFP that its archbishop emeritus, Cardinal Antonio Canizares was one of those who would not attend.

Most of those — around 80 percent — allowed to vote were appointed by Francis. They hail from all corners of the globe, with many from under-represented regions.

•⁠ ⁠Secrecy and security –

The word conclave comes from the Latin for “with key”, a reference to the lockdown imposed on cardinals during the conclave.

Their deliberations are held in the strictest secrecy on pain of instant excommunication. Smartphones and any internet access are off-limits and cardinals cannot read newspapers, listen to the radio or watch TV.

The cardinals stay in the Santa Marta residence at the Vatican until they elect a new pope.

Any contact with the outside world is permitted only for “grave and urgent reasons”, which need to be confirmed by a panel of four peers.

Only cardinal electors are allowed to be present during the actual voting, although others including doctors, clerical assistants and housekeeping staff are authorised to enter at different times.

•⁠ ⁠How voting unfolds –

Cardinals hold four ballots a day — two each in the morning and afternoon — until one candidate wins two-thirds of the votes, currently 89 ballots.

At the end of each session, the ballots are burned in a special stove. With the addition of chemicals, the stove’s chimney stack emits black smoke if no one has been elected, or white smoke if there is a new pope.

If no new pope is elected after three days, cardinals take a break and hold a day of prayer and talks.

Any single Catholic adult male can be elected pope, although in practice it is almost always one of the cardinals.

Sick cardinals are allowed to cast their ballots from their beds within the Vatican.

•⁠ ⁠What happens next –

The winning candidate is asked by the Dean of Cardinals if he accepts the pontificate and, if the answer is ‘yes’, what name he chooses as pontiff.

He then retreats to a room known as the Room of Tears to put on the papal garb — three sizes of which have been left there in advance.

The new leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics then comes out onto a balcony overlooking the crowds in St Peter’s Square as a senior cardinal cries: “Habemus Papam” (We have a pope)!

AFP

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S’Africa Offers US New Trade Deal To Avoid 30% Tariff

Published

10 hours ago

August 12, 2025

Editor

South Africa will offer a “generous” new trade deal to the United States to avoid 30 percent tariffs, ministers said Tuesday.

Washington on Friday slapped the huge tariff on some South African exports, the highest in sub-Saharan Africa, despite efforts by Pretoria to negotiate a better arrangement to avoid massive job losses.

The ministers did not release details of the new offer but said previously discussed measures to increase imports of US poultry, blueberries, and pork had been finalised.

“When the document is eventually made public, I think you would see it as a very broad, generous and ambitious offer to the United States on trade,” Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen said at a press briefing.

Officials have said the 30 per cent tariff could cost the economy around 30,000 jobs.

“Our goal is to demonstrate that South African exports do not pose a threat to US industries and that our trade relationship is, in fact, complementary,” Trade Minister Parks Tau said.

The United States is South Africa’s third-largest trading partner after the European Union and China.

However, South African exports account for only 0.25 per cent of total US imports and are “therefore not a threat to US production”, Tau said.

Steenhuisen said US diplomats raised issues related to South African domestic policies, which was a “surprise given the fact we thought we were in a trade negotiation”.

The two nations are at odds over a range of policies.

US President Donald Trump has criticised land and employment laws meant to redress racial inequalities that linger 30 years after the end of apartheid.

“Things like expropriation without compensation, things like some of the race laws in the country, are issues that they regard as barriers now to doing trade with South Africa,” he told AFP on the sidelines of the briefing.

“I think we’re seeing some form of a new era now where trade and tariffs are being used to deal with other issues, outside of what would generally be trade concerns,” Steenhuisen said.

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Over 600 Pilgrims Hospitalised After Chlorine Gas Leaked In Iraq

Published

2 days ago

August 10, 2025

Editor

More than 600 pilgrims in Iraq were briefly hospitalised with respiratory problems after inhaling chlorine as the result of a leak at a water treatment station, authorities said on Sunday.

The incident took place overnight on the route between the two Shiite holy cities of Najaf and Karbala, located in the centre and south of Iraq, respectively.

This year, several million Shiite Muslim pilgrims are expected to make their way to Karbala, which houses the shrines of the revered Imam Hussein and his brother Abbas.

There, they will mark the Arbaeen — the 40-day period of mourning during which Shiites commemorate the death of Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Mohammed.

In a brief statement, Iraq’s health ministry said, “621 cases of asphyxia have been recorded following a chlorine gas leak in Karbala”.

“All have received the necessary care and left the hospital in good health,” it said.

Security forces charged with protecting pilgrims, meanwhile, said the incident had been caused by “a chlorine leak from a water station on the Karbala-Najaf road”.

Much of Iraq’s infrastructure is in disrepair due to decades of conflict and corruption, with adherence to safety standards often lax.

In July, a massive fire at a shopping mall in the eastern city of Kut killed more than 60 people, many of whom suffocated in the toilets, according to authorities.

AFP

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PHOTOS: US Soldier Searching For Her Nigerian Father

Published

2 days ago

August 10, 2025

Editor

Old photos of Zainab James Parents, Lateef Quadri and Claudine James. Credit: Facebook

A US soldier, Zainab James, has launched a public search for her Nigerian father, identified as Lateef Quadri

The 31-year-old took to Facebook on Sunday to share old photographs of her father and her late mother, Claudine James, including one where Claudine was pregnant with her.

According to Zainab, her mother became pregnant in 1993, and she was born in 1994. Sadly, she lost her mother.

Old photos of Zainab James Parents, Lateef Quadri and Claudine James. Credit: Facebook

In her post, Zainab wrote, “Update: Mother’s name : Claudine James, born Decenber 9, 1969 in Montego Bay, Jamaica (deceased) , Hey All! A real shot in the dark but why not! My mom(pictured) got pregnant with me in 1993 ( I was born 1994) while living in Brooklyn New York. I’m looking for my father or any of his family. All I know is he was Nigerian, possibly named Lateef Quadri or something like that. They didn’t have a long term relationship as he wasn’t present at my birth but he did choose my name. No one in my family met him either. Apparently she was friends with his sister who worked in a jewelry store with her.”