Virginia Pietromarchi

6 days ago | aljazeera.com | Virginia Pietromarchi

Vatican City - It felt like the square could talk in one voice: "Leone! Leone! Leone!"Thousands of people in St Peter's Square chanted in chorus the name adopted by Robert Prevost as he ascended to the papacy on Thursday: Leo XIV. Recommended Stories Just an hour and a half earlier, white smoke had billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, announcing that a conclave of cardinals had elected a new leader for the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. Now, it was time to meet Pope Leo himself.

6 days ago | aljazeera.com | Virginia Pietromarchi

As Rome's tailors stitch new garments for clergymen, observers say what a pope wears could provide hints about his vision. Rome, Italy - For the princes of the Catholic Church, as cardinals are referred to, the conclave is not just about electing a pope. It is also about restocking wardrobes. In recent days, many have swung by central Rome's famed tailors before the conclave to browse and buy refined clerical vestments that are hard to find elsewhere.

1 week ago | aljazeera.com | Virginia Pietromarchi

Vatican City - For days, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church have been slipping beyond the Vatican's walls, gathering for discreet dinners at old trattorias and secretive sessions at private living rooms across Rome. Tasked with electing the new leader of 1.4 billion Catholics, the red-hatted princes of the Church have been engaged in feverish discussions as they seek to identify the ideal successor to Pope Francis, who died last month.

1 week ago | aljazeera.com | Virginia Pietromarchi

Rome, Italy - When Pope Francis was elected in 2013, he faced loud calls to expand the role of women within the Roman Catholic Church. To some extent, he delivered. Francis opened key meetings to women; allowed them to senior roles within the powerful central bureaucracy of the Church; and appointed the first female head of the Vatican governorate. For some, these were giant strides for a deeply conservative institution.

2 weeks ago | aljazeera.com | Virginia Pietromarchi

Amnesty accuses Israel of 'livestreamed genocide' against Palestinians in Gaza where dozens were killed in the past day. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has begun its second day of hearings into Israel's humanitarian obligations to Palestinians, more than 50 days into Israel's total blockage on aid entering the Gaza Strip.