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News/International

Auxiliary bishop John Sherrington of Westminster said that the House of Lords’ recent decision revealed a “very utilitarian” view of the human embryo and said that the Catholic view is not adequately respected or understood. Britain’s House of Commons approved the genetic modification of the human germ line to fight inherited diseases on Feb. 3.

Britain legalizes modifying germ line to fight disease

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MANCHESTER, England - Britain has become the first country in the world to legalize the genetic modification of the human germ line in an attempt to fight inherited diseases, but Catholic officials oppose the procedures.

A displaced Syrian girl finds temporary shelter at a school in Damascus, Syria, Feb. 23. A prominent Syrian Christian political leader has called for U.S.-led coalition forces to use airstrikes to aid fellow Syrian Christian and Kurdish fighters battling Islamic State militants in northwest Syria following reports of flagrant abductions and church burnings.

Politician calls for coalition airstrikes to help Syrian Christians

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AMMAN, Jordan - A prominent Syrian Christian political leader has called for U.S.-led coalition forces to use airstrikes to aid fellow Christian and Kurdish fighters battling Islamic State militants following reports of flagrant abductions and church burnings in northwest Syria.

Coptic Orthodox priests in Amman, Jordan, remember 21 murdered Egyptian Christians during a Divine Liturgy Feb. 18. The Coptic Christians were beheaded by Islamic State militants in Libya, where the Egyptian nationals had been working.

Islamic State actions reinforce urgency of dialogue, religious leaders say

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WASHINGTON - Amid frequent reports of brutal killings and attacks by Islamic State militants, the director of an Islamic group in the United States strongly believes that people of faith must "collectively denounce" these actions of "stark evil" and "cruel barbarism."

An electoral agent in Lagos, Nigeria, inspects the temporary voter card of a woman Feb. 10.

Cardinal urges Nigerian candidates to avoid hate speech during campaign

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ABUJA, Nigeria - Politicians should desist from hate speech and inciting Nigerians against each other during the campaign for general elections, said a Nigerian cardinal.

A view shows smoke rising Nov. 20 from a Kobani, Syria, neighborhood damaged by fighting between Islamic State militants and Kurdish forces.

Up to 100 Christians abducted in Islamic State offensive in Syria

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DOHUK, Iraq - Dozens of Assyrian Christians were abducted by Islamic State forces during a new offensive against a string of villages in northeastern Syria, aid and civil rights organizations reported.

A Syrian child stands barefoot outside a tent Feb. 17 at a camp in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley. This winter's heavy rains have caused the paths between the tents at the settlements to fill with water.

Freezing temps, 60-mph winds, tents: Refugees struggle in Bekaa Valley

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BEKAA VALLEY, Lebanon - Many Lebanese have spent as much time as possible indoors this winter, protecting themselves from this year's unusually brutal cold season.

U.S. President Barack Obama addresses a gathering at Siri Fort Auditorium in New Delhi Jan. 27. An Indian Catholic leader welcomed the parting message of Obama, who reiterated freedom of religion as a fundamental right.

Survey: 133 per cent increase in attacks on religion in past three years

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WASHINGTON - A new report from the Liberty Institute in Plano, Texas, shows that incidents of "religious hostility" have more than doubled in the United States over the past three years.

A boy carries belongings Nov. 17 as he walks on the rubble of damaged buildings in Aleppo, Syria.

Jesuit's kidnapping forces JRS to reassess operations in risky areas

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ROME - The kidnapping of Jesuit Father Alexis Prem Kumar has made Jesuit Refugee Service reassess the way it operates in many high-risk countries, said an agency official.

Jesuit Father Alexis Prem Kumar, who was kidnapped in Afghanistan and was held for more than eight months, speaks on a cell phone on his arrival in New Delhi Feb. 22.

'God has saved me,' says Indian Jesuit after release from Afghanistan

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NEW DELHI - A Jesuit priest kidnapped in Afghanistan and held for eight months told reporters "God has saved me," but he said he did not want to discuss details of his captivity.

Clergy look out on St. Peter's Basilica from an upper level of a new building. The Italian government is on "high alert" after a video threat made from the Islamic State group mentioned the country.

Italy and Vatican on guard after threat from Islamic State

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ROME - The Italian government is on high alert after threats from the Islamic State called Italy “the nation signed with the blood of the cross.”

A clergyman stands near photos of people killed in Ukrainian protests in 2014, during a Feb. 20 commemorating ceremony in Kiev's Independence Square.

Ukrainian bishops seek to be heard over the din of rhetoric

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VATICAN CITY - As the Ukrainian Catholic bishops met in a private audience with Pope Francis Feb. 20, Ukraine was marking its first Day of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes, commemorating those who died in the Euromaidan movement one year earlier.

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