Thousands are expected to troop to Rome to attend the funeral of Pope Francis. The Vatican is not only the global center of Catholicism, it is also a sovereign state with the pope recognized as both head of state and government. The Holy See has a permanent observer mission to the United Nations.
Every year, on January 9, hundreds of thousands of mostly barefoot Roman Catholic devotees wearing maroon shirts join in pulling and pushing a carriage of the life-sized wooden icon of Jesus Christ carrying the cross.
After an initial denial, Malacañang is now confirming President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to reject loans and grants from 18 countries that supported Iceland’s UN resolution to probe the violent war on drugs in the Philippines.
