Vatican excommunicates breakaway Catholic bishops who defied Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo XIV's first major showdown with a breakaway Catholic movement ended Thursday with the Vatican declaring the Society of St. Pius X in schism and excommunicating bishops who defied the pontiff by ordaining new bishops without his approval.

The Vatican acted one day after the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) consecrated four new bishops at its seminary in Écône, Switzerland, despite a personal appeal from Leo urging the group to abandon what the Catholic Church called a "schismatic act."

In a decree released Thursday, the Holy See excommunicated the four newly consecrated bishops as well as the two bishops who took part in the ceremony, declaring the ordinations a schism, or an intentional break from the Catholic Church.

The decision comes after decades of efforts by successive popes to reconcile with the traditionalist movement, which rejects many of the reforms adopted during the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, including allowing Mass to be celebrated in local languages instead of Latin.

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Only the pope has the authority to approve the consecration of Catholic bishops, a practice meant to preserve the Church's unity and its line of succession from the apostles.

The sanctions also reverse concessions the Vatican had granted the SSPX in recent years as it tried to bring the group back into full communion with Rome. According to the decree, the group can no longer validly administer the sacraments of confession and marriage, and the Vatican urged Catholics attending SSPX Masses to separate themselves from the movement.

The action comes just days after Leo made a rare personal appeal to the group's leader, the Rev. Davide Pagliarani, urging him to cancel the consecrations.

"I plead with you and ask you with all my heart: please turn back!" the pope wrote in a letter to Pagliarani on Monday, warning the planned ordinations would deepen the decades-old division between Rome and the SSPX.

The dispute is the first major test of Leo's pontificate. Since becoming pope, the American-born pontiff has emphasized healing divisions within the Catholic Church, including reaching out to conservatives and traditionalists who felt alienated during Pope Francis' papacy.

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During Wednesday's consecration ceremony, Pagliarani insisted the ordinations were carried out not in opposition to the pope but in service to the Church.

"We are accused of not respecting the pope," Pagliarani said. "But it is precisely because we love the pope as the vicar of Christ, as the head of the church, that we don’t want to see the pope humiliated anymore, on the side of false shepherds representing false religions."

Founded in 1970 by French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the Society of St. Pius X has long opposed what it considers theological errors introduced by the Second Vatican Council. Lefebvre was excommunicated in 1988 after consecrating four bishops without the approval of Pope John Paul II in a nearly identical confrontation.

Those excommunications were lifted in 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI in an effort to restore dialogue, though the SSPX never returned to full communion with Rome and has remained outside the Church's formal structure.

Despite that status, the society has continued to grow, reporting hundreds of priests, seminarians and religious members serving followers in dozens of countries, making it one of the largest traditionalist Catholic movements operating outside the Vatican's authority.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Khamenei body in cold storage as feared Basij mobilizes ahead of historic Iran funeral

Tehran is preparing for the July 9 burial of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, more than four months after his death, as authorities mobilize the Basij militia and mount a massive security operation ahead of what is expected to be a "historic" turnout.

The lengthy delay to the funeral has raised questions about how Khamenei's remains have been preserved, as Islamic tradition, anaylsts say, generally calls for prompt burial and discourages chemical embalming.

"The mechanism is almost certainly refrigerated cold storage, not embalming, as Islam bars chemical embalming," counterterrorism expert Dr. Mohammed Omar told Fox News Digital.

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"Shia law allows delayed burial and preservation by cold in exceptional cases, and a clerical exemption for a Supreme Leader is easy to get," he added.

"Iran's forensic morgues already hold bodies for months, so four months in freezing is not exotic. That is what 'religious and legal standards' cover," Mohammed said.

Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28 with a targeted U.S. strike that killed Khamenei at his compound in Tehran. He had ruled the Islamic Republic for 36 years.

"There may not be much of a body to present. Khamenei was killed by a bunker-penetration strike, and others killed with him were recovered weeks later and identified by DNA," Mohammed explained.

"A regime holding an intact body does not cancel the farewell, shift the burial site repeatedly, and confirm that he can be buried only days out.

"It reads less like reverence and more like remains they could preserve but not display," he said.

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With that, Iranian authorities are portraying the funeral as both a farewell to the leader and a show of strength under the slogan "We Must Avenge."

According to Iranian state media, Yaqoub Soleimani, deputy for cultural and educational affairs at the Martyrs Foundation and one of the funeral's organizers, said Wednesday the ceremony would be conducted "with full grandeur."

Soleimani said a turnout of 1 million people would make the event "a historical occasion" and "a national epic in the memory of the Islamic Republic of Iran."

The schedule starts with public viewings Saturday and Sunday in Tehran. A funeral procession is scheduled for July 6, where local authorities estimate 15 million to 20 million people could attend.

Another procession is planned the following day in Qom, one of Shiite Islam's holiest cities.

"The numbers the regime is putting out — up to 20 million mourners in Tehran, 35 million nationwide, more than 90 countries represented, 14,000 journalists credentialed — are not logistics," Mohammed, of the George Washington Program on Extremism, said.

"They are the message. Tehran is spending everything it has to project continuity and strength because after the war both are in question."

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According to Iran International, Tehran is also preparing a massive security operation for the funeral.

"The Basij and the IRGC running this is the story, not a detail," Mohammed said.

"The Basij is coordinating logistics — highways turned into parking, each Tehran district assigned a province, five public holidays declared — and the Guard has crowd control.

"This is a mobilization dressed as a funeral. The same apparatus organizing the grief this week is the apparatus that put down the January protests and denied funerals to the families of the people it killed then. American readers should hold those two facts next to each other," he added.

While senior Iraqi officials will attend the funeral, representation from other major powers will be limited.

Although Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian personally invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India will instead send a lower-level official delegation.

Reports on June 30 also confirmed that Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili will attend the ceremony.

"No major power is sending its top leader," Mohammed said.

"For a regime that claims to lead a front stretching from Beirut to Sanaa, a regional turnout at its founder-successor's funeral is the isolation showing through the pageantry.

"For Washington, it is a useful readout: the war left Tehran's axis smaller and more regional than the regime advertises," he added.

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Families sue Maduro in US, accuse ex-president of directing police unit tied to extrajudicial killings

Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is facing a new legal challenge in the United States after the families of five Venezuelan men filed a civil lawsuit accusing him of overseeing a Venezuelan police unit responsible for extrajudicial killings and torture during his presidency.

The complaint alleges Maduro created Venezuela's Special Action Forces, known as FAES, and exercised command over the unit as it allegedly carried out a campaign of extrajudicial killings between 2017 and 2021. The families are seeking compensatory and punitive damages under the Torture Victim Protection Act.

The lawsuit opens a second legal front for Maduro in the United States, where he is already awaiting trial on federal drug trafficking and weapons charges. The complaint says venue is proper in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York because Maduro is currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

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According to the complaint, FAES officers routinely entered homes before dawn wearing black clothing and face coverings, separated young men from their families, forced many to their knees, executed them and then staged crime scenes to make it appear the victims had "resisted authority." Plaintiffs also allege officers looted homes, planted weapons and transported victims to hospitals after they had already died in an effort to conceal the alleged killings.

The lawsuit details five incidents between 2017 and 2021 involving six victims and also accuses FAES officers of torturing three relatives by beating, detaining or forcing them to witness the killings before they were denied justice through Venezuela's judicial system.

Attorneys representing the plaintiffs, Maduro's attorney Barry Pollack and Amnesty International did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

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The lawsuit alleges Maduro established FAES in 2017 as a special tactical unit within Venezuela's National Bolivarian Police and later publicly defended the force despite criticism from the United Nations and other human rights organizations. It cites reports from the United Nations, Human Rights Watch and the U.S. State Department documenting allegations of widespread human rights abuses by the unit.

The families argue they have been unable to obtain justice in Venezuela because prosecutors either refused to pursue investigations or failed to hold senior officials accountable, leaving them without an effective legal remedy in their home country.

The Torture Victim Protection Act allows civil claims in U.S. courts over alleged torture and extrajudicial killings committed under the authority of a foreign government.

Maduro served as Venezuela's president from 2013 until 2026, according to the complaint. He has pleaded not guilty in his criminal case and has previously described himself as a "prisoner of war."

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State Department congratulates Keiko Fujimori as Peru's president-elect following razor-thin vote count

The State Department on Tuesday congratulated conservative candidate Keiko Fujimori after she was declared the winner of Peru’s presidential runoff election by a razor-thin margin.

The statement marked a significant milestone in Latin American relations, with Washington signaling it expects to work closely with Fujimori’s administration on shared priorities.

"The United States congratulates President-Elect Keiko Fujimori of Peru on her important electoral victory," the department said. 

"The Trump Administration looks forward to deepening collaboration with the Fujimori Administration to advance security cooperation and to strengthen bilateral cooperation on investment and trade in our region."

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Her victory comes as Washington seeks to strengthen ties with pro-market allies in Latin America amid growing Chinese economic influence in the region.

Beijing recently completed the Chancay deepwater port in Peru — a $1.3 billion mega-project that serves as China’s key logistics hub on the Pacific coast.

Fujimori’s tough stance on organized crime also aligns with U.S. efforts to expand regional security and anti-trafficking cooperation.

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Fujimori was declared the winner Monday by Peru’s National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE), the electoral authority responsible for reporting vote count results. The country’s final authority on election matters, the National Jury of Elections (JNE), has yet to issue its official proclamation, according to Reuters.

According to the ONPE, Fujimori secured 50.1% of the vote, winning by fewer than 50,000 votes out of roughly 18 million ballots cast.

Her victory over leftist challenger Roberto Sánchez marks her fourth presidential bid and makes her Peru’s first female president-elect. 

The result caps a deeply divisive election cycle in a country that has gone through nine presidents in the past decade.

Fujimori is also the daughter of former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori, who ruled the country during the 1990s.

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Fujimori’s presidency marks a return of her family’s political brand to Peru’s highest office — a movement that has long carried a complicated relationship with the United States.

While Washington once backed her father for his fight against communist guerrillas and economic reforms in the 1990s, the U.S. later condemned his government over the dismantling of democratic institutions and allegations of human rights abuses.

Keiko Fujimori has since spent more than two decades attempting to reshape "Fujimorismo" into a modern conservative, law-and-order political movement.  

Peruvians voted in favor of Fujimori amid a surge in violent crime, extortion and years of political instability.

Fujimori campaigned on an "iron fist" approach to security and a pledge to protect Peru’s free-market economy, while her opponent focused on rural economic grievances. 

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Fitness influencer says Lufthansa told her she looked ‘naked,’ forced her to zip up before boarding flight

Fitness influencer Edda Elisa Pilz says she was prevented from boarding a Lufthansa flight from Berlin to Austria until she covered up her athletic outfit, alleging an airline employee repeatedly called her "naked" during the encounter as temperatures reached 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit).

Pilz, 24, who boasts more than 500,000 followers on both Instagram and TikTok, shared a video describing the confrontation while preparing to board the Lufthansa flight during the summer heatwave. The video has since circulated widely on social media, where Pilz questioned whether the airline has a dress code for passengers and criticized what she described as the employee's treatment of her.

Pilz said she was waiting to have her boarding pass scanned when a Lufthansa employee stopped her from boarding.

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According to Pilz, the employee told her, "You cannot board like that," before repeatedly telling her she was "naked."

Pilz said she was wearing a matching athletic top and shorts and questioned why the outfit was considered inappropriate in the summer heat.

"What am I supposed to put on?" she said in the video. "What should I wear? It is clothing."

POPULAR CRUISE LINE’S BIKINI CRACKDOWN COULD SURPRISE PASSENGERS AT ISLAND PORTS

According to Pilz, the employee told her she was not wearing "normal clothes" and instructed her to put something over her outfit before she would be allowed to board the aircraft.

Pilz said she put on a jacket but was then told she also had to zip it completely before being allowed to proceed.

She alleged the employee then blamed her for delaying the boarding process.

PASSENGER ALLEGEDLY BOARDS FLIGHT WITH FAKE BOARDING PASS, FORCING PLANE BACK TO GATE

According to Pilz, the employee told her, "Because of you, we are now delayed. Because of you, the whole flight is delayed, because you are holding up all the traffic here."

Pilz said she replied that she had simply asked for an explanation because she had never heard of an airline dress code.

She also claimed men wearing shorts were allowed to board the same flight without being stopped.

The influencer said the incident was less about whether Lufthansa has a clothing policy than the way she said she was treated by the employee.

"I can accept rules," she said. "But the attitude was unacceptable."

Pilz ended the video by directly questioning Lufthansa and asking whether the airline condones that type of customer service, adding that she was waiting for an official response.

Lufthansa's General Conditions of Carriage do not appear to include a specific passenger dress code. The airline says it may refuse transportation under certain circumstances, including when a passenger's conduct could significantly affect the "safety and security, the health or wellbeing of other passengers," or for other operational or security reasons, but the policy does not specifically address athletic clothing.

Pilz and Lufthansa did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Fox News Digital's Christina Shaw contributed to this report.

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Thousands of police deployed across South Africa as deadly anti-immigration protests spread to multiple cities

Thousands of police officers were deployed across South Africa after large-scale protests against illegal immigration erupted Tuesday, with destructive clashes spreading across multiple cities.

The unrest, involving thousands of protesters, broke out ahead of a June 30 deadline set by some organizers demanding the departure of all illegal migrants, according to Reuters.

The marches reportedly drew thousands of mostly poor or unemployed South Africans, who say foreign migrants have taken jobs by accepting lower wages while also fueling higher crime rates.

At least four people have been killed as violence and looting spread across the country, Reuters reported.

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The clashes mark the largest migration-related protests since anti-migrant violence erupted in South Africa in 2008.

While thousands of foreign nationals from other African countries had already fled ahead of Tuesday’s so-called deadline, tensions have remained high, Reuters said.

Multiple businesses and properties were vandalized in several areas, according to reports.

In anticipation of further attacks, many shops reportedly closed, with foreign workers staying home.

Landlords in Durban and Johannesburg also evicted foreign tenants illegally to avoid further trouble, witnesses alleged.

Reuters added that 100 Congolese nationals were reported sleeping on the streets of Durban.  

SOUTH AFRICA'S HIGH VIOLENCE AND LAND DEBATES CLASH WITH WESTERN MEDIA VIEWS

While many marches were considered peaceful, police reported that they arrested several looters and fired rubber bullets to disperse crowds.

National broadcaster SABC added that protesters looted shacks belonging to foreign nationals in the Soweto township. 

In Thembisa, a suburb of Johannesburg, rioters reportedly threw stones at police and suspected migrants, with witnesses saying sporadic gunfire was heard.

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Police deployed tactical vehicles and fired shots in Benoni, east of Johannesburg, after being confronted by a group of roughly 500 protesters, Daily Maverick reported. 

Thousands of police officers have been deployed nationwide, while the military was placed on standby, a defense spokesperson said in a statement. 

"To those who intend to break the law tomorrow, our message is simple: do not test the resolve of the State," Lt. Gen. Tebello Mosikili said. 

The "March and March" group, one of the more prominent organizations behind the unrest, addressed the violence, saying it cannot be held responsible for spontaneous incidents breaking out during the demonstrations.  

"Unfortunately, we can't be in every single community telling them ... how to behave," Jacinta Ngobese, leader of the March and March group, told Reuters two weeks ago. 

Ngobese said the group plans to hold weekly marches until its demands are met, despite the government rejecting the deadline and saying only authorities can enforce immigration laws.

"For ​the next six months, we are asking for our national resources to be used to take the illegal immigrants out of this country. From building to building -- they ​must go," Ngobese said, according to ZimLive.

Despite South Africa’s high unemployment rate, the country remains Africa’s largest economy and continues to draw migrants.

The immigrant population stands at about 3 million, or roughly 4% of the total, according to StatsSA.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Pope Leo pleads with breakaway Catholic group not to commit 'sin of extreme gravity'

Pope Leo XIV issued an extraordinary last-minute plea Tuesday to a breakaway traditionalist Catholic group to abandon plans to consecrate four bishops without Vatican approval, warning the move was a "sin of extreme gravity" and could deepen a decades-old split with the Church.

In a letter addressed to the Rev. Davide Pagliarani, leader of the Society of St. Pius X, Leo urged the group to reconsider before Wednesday's planned ceremony in Econe, Switzerland, saying it would place the bishops involved outside the Church’s communion.

"I plead with you and ask you with all my heart: please turn back!" the pope wrote.

POPE LEO SENDS UNMISTAKABLE MESSAGE ON IMMIGRANTS DURING VISIT HONORING AMERICA'S FIRST SAINT

Under church law, consecrating bishops without papal approval is considered a schismatic act and carries automatic excommunication for both the bishops being ordained and the bishop performing the ceremony.

"I urge you to consider carefully the spiritual good of the faithful, because the schismatic act you are about to undertake would deprive them of the licit, and in some cases, even valid reception of the sacraments," Leo wrote.

The dispute marks the first major challenge of Leo's pontificate. Since becoming pope, the American-born pontiff has emphasized healing divisions within the Church, including tensions with traditionalist Catholics who favor the old Latin Mass.

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The Society of St. Pius X was founded after the Second Vatican Council, rejecting many of the church's reforms, including allowing Mass to be celebrated in local languages instead of Latin. The group has long argued that it is preserving authentic Catholic teaching.

The society defended its decision to consecrate four new bishops, saying there is a "state of necessity" requiring it to provide bishops for its faithful.

The planned ceremony echoes a similar confrontation in 1988, when the group's founder, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, consecrated four bishops without papal approval. The Vatican responded by excommunicating Lefebvre and the newly ordained bishops, though those excommunications were lifted in 2009 as part of an effort to restore relations.

Despite years of dialogue with the Vatican, the SSPX remains outside the church's formal structure.

The society has continued to expand in recent decades, reporting hundreds of priests, seminarians and religious members across dozens of countries, making it one of the largest traditionalist movements operating outside the Catholic Church's official authority.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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