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Russia has installed an exhibition titled “Ten Centuries of Polish Russophobia” outside a cemetery for thousands of Poles murdered by the Soviets in the 1940 Katyn massacre. It opened just before Poland marked its annual day of remembrances for victims notesfrompoland.com/2026/04/16/rus…

Iran to execute the first woman over widespread anti-regime demonstrations - @nypost Bita Hemmati is accused of using explosives, throwing concrete blocks, taking part in protests & “disrupting national security”. She is set to be hanged alongside her husband. CC: @volker_turk READ MORE: 👇 NEW YORK POST Iran to execute the first woman over widespread anti-regime demonstrations By Anthony Blair Published April 15, 2026 Iran’s barbaric regime is set to execute its first female protester over recent protests, one of an estimated 1,600 sentenced to death by the Islamic Republic in the past year. Bita Hemmati is the first woman due to be hanged in relation to the demonstrations that broke out in January across the country and were viciously stamped out by government forces. The regime accused her of numerous crimes, including using explosives and weapons, throwing objects such as concrete blocks, participating in protest gatherings, and disrupting national security, according to a Tuesday press release from the opposition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). Her husband, Mohammadreza Majid Asl, 34, as well as two other men, Behrouz and Kourosh Zamaninezhad, who lived in the couple’s apartment building, were also sentenced to death following a hasty trial and their property confiscated. A fifth defendant, Hemmati’s relative Amir Hemmati, was sentenced to almost six years in prison for “assembly and collusion against national security” as well as “propaganda against the regime.” They were accused by Iran’s government of “operational action for the hostile government of the United States and hostile groups,” according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. The group was all arrested in Tehran, which saw the largest national protests against the Iranian regime. No execution date has yet been given. “The Iranian Resistance once again calls on the United Nations, relevant international bodies, and human rights defenders to take immediate action to save the lives of prisoners sentenced to death, especially political prisoners and those detained during the uprising,” the NCRI said in a statement. The protests in Iran were triggered by a series of local strikes by shopkeepers and market merchants in Tehran in late December. Within two days, it had spread across the capital, and by January, students and other groups had joined a nationwide show of opposition. Thousands of protesters were reportedly killed or injured, with tens of thousands arrested or detained as part of the government crackdown.

Yes, he really said that. Yesterday Vice President JD Vance criticized Pope Leo XIV for not knowing enough theology: "I think it's very, very important for the pope to be careful when he talks about matters of theology ... If you’re going to opine on matters of theology, you’ve got to be careful, you’ve got to make sure it’s anchored in the truth," he said, at a Turning Point conference. One of the many, many, ironies about that statement is that it came in response to Pope Leo's comments about war and peace and, specifically, the concept of "just war," which originated with St. Augustine. As many have already noted, when the Vice President was making his comments, Pope Leo XIV, a member of the Augustinian Order, and twice Prior General of the Augustinians before his election as Pope, was visiting the hometown of St. Augustine, then called "Hippo," now in Annaba, a town in modern-day Algeria. For good measure, Pope Leo XIV, the man critiqued for insufficient theological education, earned not only a master's degree in divinity, but also licentiate and a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. JD Vance's recent conversion to Catholicism is beside the point, because many converts are of course not only highly intelligent (and learned in theology) but faithful and energetic Catholics. We rejoice over everyone entering the church. What most of us do not rejoice over, however, is a deadly combination of inaccuracy and hubris. Pace, Vice President Vance, but the current war in Iran is not a just war under Catholic doctrine. You can hear that from church leaders from across the theological spectrum, from Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the head of the military vicariate and former head of the @USCCB, to Cardinal Robert McElroy, Archbishop of Washington who holds doctorates in both theology and political science. You can look all that up online. Suffice to say, the Vice President doesn't seem to understand the tenets of just war. Nor does he seem to understand the fundamental position of the church, which is for peace. "War is always a defeat for humanity," as St. John Paul II said. If that authority isn't enough, then turn to Jesus who said, "Blessed are the peacemakers," not "Blessed are the warmongers." And after the Resurrection, the Risen Christ says to the frightened disciples not "Vengeance is mine" but "Peace be with you." Incidentally, the day before, the Vice President said that the Pope (and the Vatican) should stick to teaching about morality, also seeming to forget that war and peace are profoundly moral issues. For his part, Pope Leo was focused yesterday on his spiritual father, St. Augustine. After what seemed like an emotional visit to Hippo, he celebrated Mass at the Basilica of St. Augustine in Annaba. During his homily he said, "The primary task of pastors as ministers of the Gospel is therefore to bear witness to God before the world with one heart and one soul, not permitting our concerns to lead us astray through fear, nor trends to undermine us through compromise." Amen. Let's all continue to pray for the Holy Father as he works for peace. (Image: Pope Leo XIV prays at the archeological ruins of Hippo, home of St. Augustine, in current-day Algeria. CNS photo).