The funeral of Pope Francis was held in Vatican City on Saturday, with hundreds of thousands of mourners attending, including U.S. President Donald Trump and other world leaders.

Some 400,000 people packed St. Peter’s Square and lined the streets of Rome to bid farewell to the Argentine pontiff, who headed the Catholic Church since 2013.

More than 50 heads of state were present at the ceremony, as Trump was spotted meeting his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the first time since their public clash in the White House in February.

An uncited source in the White House said that the encounter was “productive,” without further elaboration.

Zelenskyy’s bureau said that the meeting lasted for 15 minutes, posting a photo of the two men sitting face-to-face in the middle of a large hall in St. Peter's Basilica.

Israel was represented at the funeral by its ambassador to the Vatican, Yaron Sideman.

Following the pope’s death on Monday, aged 88, Israeli President Isaac Herzog eulogized him on X.

“I send my deepest condolences to the Christian world and especially the Christian communities in Israel—the Holy Land—on the loss of their great spiritual father, His Holiness Pope Francis,” the statement read.

“I truly hope that his prayers for peace in the Middle East and for the safe return of the hostages will soon be answered. May his memory continue to inspire acts of kindness, unity, and hope,” Herzog continued.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eulogized Francis on Thursday, saying, “The State of Israel expresses its deepest condolences to the Catholic Church and the Catholic community worldwide at the passing of Pope Francis. May he rest in peace.”

Israel’s reaction to the pope’s death sparked controversy, after the Israeli Foreign Ministry conveyed its condolences on X, only to delete the message hours later.

“Rest in peace, Pope Francis. May his memory be a blessing,” read the deleted tweet, which contained a translation of the Hebrew-language standard phrase for a kind commemoration of a deceased person, akin to “Rest in Peace” in English.

The deletion prompted speculation that it was over Francis’s criticism of Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza, including in November when he repeated allegations that “what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide.”

An Israeli official on Wednesday, speaking to JNS on condition of anonymity citing diplomatic protocol, pushed back against claims that official Israel was muting its reaction to the pope’s death.

He noted that the statement by Herzog, as head of state, was the “definitive reaction.”

“The issues we had with the late pope, of blessed memory, we are not going to air out after his passing, and it didn’t prevent an Israeli acknowledgment at the highest levels of his passing,” the official said.

Argentina’s President Javier Milei attended the funeral as well, describing Francis on Thursday as “the most important Argentine in history.”

He further remarked that “Despite differences that seem minor now, it was a true honor to have known him in his kindness and wisdom.”

Before becoming president, Milei branded Francis as “the representative of the evil one” and called him a “commie.”

He was “a pope among the people, with an open heart,” striving for an open-minded Catholic Church, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, said in his homily, according to AFP.

The cardinal hailed the pope’s “conviction that the Church is a home for all, a home with its doors always open,” to which the massive crowd applauded.

An Israel Defense Forces soldier was killed on Friday battling Palestinian terrorists in the northern Gaza Strip.

The slain man was named as Capt. Ido Voloch, 21, from Jerusalem. He was an Armored Corps platoon commander in the 46th Battalion of the 401st “Iron Trails” Brigade, the military said on Saturday night.

On Thursday, Master Sgt. (res.) Asaf Cafri, 26, a tank driver in the 14th Reserve Armored Brigade’s 79th Battalion, was killed fighting in Gaza. In the same incident in the northern Strip, a fellow reservist of the 79th Battalion and an officer in the Yahalom special forces engineering unit sustained serious wounds.

Eight hundred fifty Israeli soldiers have been killed since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist invasion, including 412 during the ground campaign in the Strip.

Israeli officials denied on Saturday any connection to the massive explosion that rocked the Port of Shahid Rajaee, Iran's largest, on Saturday, killing at least five people and injuring more than 700 others.

A large plume of smoke was seen above the port, one of two located in the city of Bandar Abbas in southern Iran. The Port of Shahid Rajaee is located on the north shore of the Strait of Hormuz, about nine miles west-southwest of the Port of Bandar Abbas.

Initial reports suggested that the blast was linked to a shipment of a chemical ingredient used to make fuel for ballistic missiles.

Iranian authorities did not disclose any information about the cause of the blast, though they denied that it was linked to the country’s oil industry, AP reported.

A spokesperson for the Islamic Republic’s crisis management organization, Hossein Zafari, told Iran’s ILNA news agency that “the cause of the explosion was the chemicals inside the [shipping] containers.”

In March, private security firm Ambrey said, the Port of Shahid Rajaee had unloaded a shipment of “sodium perchlorate rocket fuel,” according to AP.

“The fire was reportedly the result of improper handling of a shipment of solid fuel intended for use in Iranian ballistic missiles,” the security firm added.

The Financial Times in January reported that the fuel was sent from China to Iran in two vessels, as the Islamic Republic was looking to replenish its depleted missile stocks after firing about 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in October 2024.

AP also reported that one of the vessels has likely carried the chemical ingredient to the port in March, after analyzing ship-tracking data.

Iran never confirmed accepting the shipment.

Western explosives and munitions experts say that the orange smoke observed from the blast is consistent with the burning of nitrogen compounds, which are a key component in rocket fuel.

An enormous explosion due to the instability of these chemicals occurred at the Port of Beirut in Lebanon in 2020, killing 218 people, injuring more than 7,000 others and displacing some 300,000 people. Some suggested the blast was created by explosive material reportedly stored at the port by Hezbollah.

The Port of Shahid Rajaee is a strategic import and export facility for Iran. It handles 85% of the total loading and unloading carried out at the country's ports, the Tehran Times reported in September 2021.

It is also a key port from which arms are transported to the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen.

All operations in the port have been reportedly halted.

Cmdr. (res.) Eyal Pinko, a senior researcher at the Begin Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar-Ilan University, who served in the Israeli Navy for 23 years, estimated in early April that Iran has “several hundred missiles” left in its arsenal, after firing some 300 missiles and drones at Israel on April 13, 2024, and another 200 missiles on Oct. 1, 2024, in two of the largest missile strikes in history. 

The attacks featured some of Iran’s most advanced projectiles, including the liquid-fueled Emad, a variant of the Ghader missile (itself a variant of the Shahab 3), the Khorramshahr 2 missile (a solid-fuel missile based on the Fateh 110), and likely use of the Fatah 1 Iranian hypersonic missile.

Israel’s Arrow 3 missile defense system intercepted the majority of the threats in both attacks, with the assistance of the United States and regional states, which also downed some of the projectiles.

Israel responded on Oct. 26 with broad waves of strikes in Iran, targeting Iran’s air defense systems and missile solid fuel factories, as well as, according to media reports, a site at Parchin linked to Tehran's nuclear program.

The inaugural JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem on April 27-28 will convene the most influential leaders and decision-makers to address the critical issues shaping Israel’s future and role in the global arena.

Government officials, policymakers, diplomats, security experts, pro-Israel organization leaders and influencers will hold vital discussions aimed at addressing Israel's challenges and opportunities in a post-Oct. 7 world.

Among the top Israeli leaders slated to address the conference are Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli and Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon.

U.S. speakers will include Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee; Victoria Coates, vice president of the Heritage Foundation and former deputy national security adviser to President Donald Trump; Kiron Skinner, former director of policy planning staff of the United States; Pastor John Hagee, founder and chairman of Christians United for Israel; Mark Levin, host of the Mark Levin Show, "Life, Liberty & Levin"; and Morton Klein, national president of the Zionist Organization of America.

Other pro-Israel luminaries who will address the conference are Caroline Glick, international affairs adviser to the Israeli prime minister; Melanie Phillips, JNS senior contributing editor; Col. Richard Kemp, CBE, former British Army Commander; Eugene Kontorovich, professor of International Law, George Mason University; and British barrister and international law expert Natasha Hausdorff.

The summit will provide a premier platform for thought leaders to chart a path forward—one that ensures Israel remains a military, economic and moral superpower on the global stage.

Through strategic dialogue and high-level engagement, this summit will play a pivotal role in shaping the policies that can define Israel’s next chapter.

Day 1 (Sunday, April 27) will feature Forum Speaker Panels on topics ranging from the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship to combating antisemitism. That will be followed by the opening plenary and a diplomatic evening reception, officially marking the commencement of this historic gathering.

Day 2 (Monday, April 28) will include a morning and afternoon plenary, additional Forum Speaker Panels covering topics including extending sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, changing Jewish philanthropic priorities and restarting Israel's economy, followed by a closing cocktail dinner reception.

As Magda Baratz, a 96-year-old Holocaust survivor, was visiting the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany, where she was held during World War II, her great-grandson was killed in action in Gaza.

Master Sgt. (res.) Asaf Cafri, 26, was a tank driver in the 14th Reserve Armored Brigade’s 79th Battalion, from Beit Hashmonai near Ramla in central Israel.

He was killed on Thursday by terrorist sniper fire in the Beit Hanoun area while outside his tank, near one of the army’s posts in the IDF-controlled buffer zone, according to a preliminary IDF probe.

“Asaf fell while his great-grandmother and our family were visiting the camp,” Cafri’s aunt Hadas told Ynet News.

“She said her victory was returning to the camp with her family,” Hadas continued. That “going back to the place where she almost died, this time with a family she built in Israel, was her personal triumph.”

Baratz attended a memorial ceremony at Bergen-Belsen as a guest of honor and was accompanied by her grandson Haggai, Cafri’s father.

Haggai learned of his son's death when he arrived in Israel.

Cafri’s aunt related that on the day of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre, he donned his uniform and headed south without hesitation.

“He felt it was his generation’s turn to serve and protect. He always said, ‘It’s our duty to give of ourselves and defend the country.’ He believed he was fighting to bring the hostages home,” Hadas said.

“This Passover, he stayed in Gaza. He was the only one missing from the Seder. We video-called, sent photos and messages, but he was deeply missed. He had a pure heart and lived to do good. We’re shattered.”

Cafri had three younger brothers, Yoav, Itay and Idan, and was studying engineering at Ariel University, according to Ynet.

He participated in four rounds of fighting in Gaza, Hadas said.

Cafri’s funeral was set to be held on Sunday, at the cemetery in the Gezer Regional Council, near Ramla.

A total of 849 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, invasion, including 412 during the ground campaign in the Strip.

The Israeli Air Force recently eliminated a terrorist cell in the Gaza Strip after its members fired an anti-tank missile at IDF troops, the military said on Friday.

During operations in the last few weeks in the Tuffah and al-Daraj quarters of Gaza City, the terrorist cell fired at soldiers of the 401st "Iron Tracks" Brigade from a building, the statement read.

In a “rapid” response, an aircraft eliminated the terrorists with no casualties to Israeli forces, the IDF said.

Additionally, the troops located and destroyed several rocket launchers intended for firing at Israeli territory, it added.

“IDF forces will continue to operate against terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip to protect the citizens of the State of Israel and, in particular, the residents of the Gaza envelope,” the statement concluded.

Also on Friday, Defense Minister Israel Katz commended Israel’s security forces, tweeting: “Thousands of IDF soldiers, both regular and reservists, are currently fighting bravely in Gaza for the release of the hostages and the eradication of Hamas terrorists.”

Katz noted that the IDF is operating with “great force, providing comprehensive protection for maneuvering forces from the air, land and sea, and supporting operations with heavy equipment to neutralize explosives and demolish threatening structures.

“The achievements are significant, yet the dangers remain great and the price is heavy,” he wrote.

He concluded his post by saying that all Israelis “must embrace and support” the IDF’s commanders and soldiers, and “pray for their safety and success.”

On Thursday, an IDF reservist was killed and two others were seriously wounded battling Hamas terrorists in northern Gaza.

The military named the slain man as Master Sgt. (res.) Asaf Cafri, 26, a tank driver in the 14th Reserve Armored Brigade’s 79th Battalion, from Beit Hashmonai near Ramla in central Israel. He was promoted from the rank of Sgt. 1st Class following his death.

In the same incident in the northern Strip, a fellow reservist of the 79th Battalion and an officer in the Yahalom special forces engineering unit sustained serious wounds. The soldiers were evacuated to a hospital and their families were notified, the IDF said.

According to an initial IDF probe, Cafri, who was outside his tank, was killed by terrorist sniper fire in the Beit Hanoun area, near one of the army’s posts in the IDF-controlled buffer zone.

The two other soldiers were subsequently wounded by anti-tank fire launched by the terrorists, according to the initial investigation.

If the negotiations on a deal to dismantle Tehran’s nuclear program fail, the United States will lead an attack against it, President Donald Trump said on Friday.

“It’s possible we’ll have to attack, because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” the president told Time magazine in an interview conducted last week and published on Friday, marking his first 100 days in office.

Asked by the interviewer whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu might drag the U.S. into war with the Islamic Republic, Trump said, “he may go into a war. But we’re not getting dragged in. … You asked if he’d drag me in, like I’d go in unwillingly. No, I may go in very willingly if we can’t get a deal. If we don’t make a deal, I’ll be leading the pack.”

Trump went on to dismiss reports that his administration stopped Israel from attacking Iran.

“I didn’t stop them. But I didn’t make it comfortable for them, because I think we can make a deal without the attack. I hope we can … Ultimately, I was going to leave [the choice to attack to Israel], but I said I would much prefer a deal than bombs being dropped.”

The president further remarked that he would be open to meeting Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in person.

On the prospect of an Israeli-Saudi normalization of ties, Trump said that Riyadh may very well join the four Arab countries that signed bilateral agreements with Jerusalem during his first term.

“I think Saudi Arabia will go into the Abraham Accords. … We had four countries in there, it was all set. We would have had it packed. Now we’re going to start it again,” he said, referring to the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan that normalized ties with the Jewish state in 2020.

Although Trump did not say when this diplomatic development might occur, he alluded to a time frame after his trip to the Middle East next month, where he is slated to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.

Trump was also asked about his policy to deport foreign students participating in antisemitic campus protests.

“I agree with free speech, but not riots all over every college in America. Tremendous antisemitism going on in this country,” the president replied.

The students “can protest,” he continued, “but they can’t destroy the schools like they did with Columbia and others.”

Meanwhile, the American and Iranian envoys to Oman concluded on Saturday the third round of nuclear talks on a positive note, agreeing to meet again on May 3, Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi said in a post on X.

Negotiations “identified a shared aspiration to reach agreement based on mutual respect and enduring commitments,” the minister wrote.

“Core principles, objectives and technical concerns were all addressed. Talks will continue next week with a further high level meeting provisionally scheduled for May 3rd,” al-Busaidi wrote, without describing the discussions in detail.

According to AP, al-Busaidi mediated the two previous rounds of talks in Muscat, the Omani capital, and Rome.

Negotiations are being led by U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

Meanwhile, Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), arrived in Israel on Thursday for a brief visit.

Kurilla is highly respected by Defense Minister Israel Katz and senior commanders in the Israel Defense Forces.

The prevailing assumption is that his visit will center on planning for a possible military strike on the Islamic Republic, as well as on countermeasures to defend against any Iranian response, should Trump decide to employ the military option.

Kurilla is known for his aggressive stance toward Iran and is considered a firm believer that a substantial blow can be dealt to its nuclear infrastructure.

The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday morning intercepted a missile fired by Houthi terrorists in Yemen.

The projectile was downed before entering Israeli airspace but the attack still triggered air-raid sirens across the country's south. There were no immediate reports of significant injuries or damage.

Hours later, the Israeli Air Force intercepted a drone fired at the country “from the east,” a term generally used to designate Yemen. In accordance with protocol, no sirens were sounded, the military said.

On Wednesday, a ballistic missile launched from Yemen triggered sirens in northern Israel.

“An interceptor was launched toward the missile, and the missile was most likely successfully intercepted,” the IDF said. Several people were treated for minor injuries sustained while running to shelter.

The Houthis, an Iranian-backed terrorist organization based in Yemen, have intensified attacks on Israel since October 2023, following the onset of the war between Israel and Hamas. The group, officially known as Ansar Allah, receives military and financial support from the Islamic Republic of Iran and was redesignated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) by the Trump administration in January.

The escalation began after Hamas—a U.S.-designated terrorist organization—carried out the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people and kidnapping 251. That attack sparked a broader regional conflict involving Iran-aligned groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon.

In response to repeated Houthi strikes on commercial vessels in the Red Sea and on Israeli territory, the United States launched “Operation Rough Rider,” a large-scale campaign of air and naval strikes, on March 15. This effort, the most significant American action in the region during U.S. President Donald Trump’s second term, aims to degrade Houthi capabilities.

Despite U.S. and Israeli countermeasures, Houthi missile and drone attacks have continued, prompting air-raid sirens in central and northern Israel in recent weeks.

George Santos, who was expelled from Congress in 2023, was sentenced on Friday to more than seven years in prison for identity theft and wire-fraud charges stemming from his 2022 midterm campaign.

“I cannot rewrite the past, but I can control the road ahead. I have tried my best,” Santos said at his sentencing, according to CNN, adding that he told the judge that he “betrayed the confidence entrusted to me” by the American people.

The former Republican representative from New York pleaded guilty last August to aggravated identity theft and wire fraud. He also admitted to lying to Congress, fraudulently collecting unemployment during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic and cheating his campaign donors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

After he was thrown out of Congress—the sixth member in history—he also faced a 23-count federal indictment that included conspiracy, identity theft and credit-card fraud.

Santos claimed, among other things, that he was of Jewish ancestry, that his mother was Jewish and that his maternal grandparents had survived the Holocaust. When proven false, he denied he ever said it.

Oddly enough, he was sentenced one day after Yom Hashoah.

“I never claimed to be Jewish,” he told the New York Post in 2022. “I am Catholic. Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish.’”

Genealogical records in Brazil, where both of Santos’s parents were born, suggest that his maternal grandparents were Catholics with no connection to the Holocaust.