International
JUST IN: South Africa’s Pistorius Released From Prison
South Africa’s ex-Olympic runner Oscar Pistorius was released from jail on parole Friday and “is now at home”, authorities said, almost 11 years after he shot dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in a crime that gripped the world.
Having served more than half his sentence, the 37-year-old double-amputee was quietly whisked out from the Atteridgeville prison on the outskirts of the capital Pretoria, avoiding the hordes of media gathered outside.
“He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home,” the department of correctional services said in a statement.
Pistorius, known worldwide as “Blade Runner” for his carbon-fibre prosthetics, will not be allowed to speak to the media as a condition of his parole.
Prison authorities had previously warned the press that there would be no opportunity to photograph or speak to him.
Pistorius killed Steenkamp, a model who was 29 years old at the time, in the early hours of Valentine’s Day 2013, firing four times through the bathroom door of his ultra-secure Pretoria house.
The shooting came a year after Pistorius made history by being the first double-amputee to race at Olympic level when he appeared at the London 2012 games.
He was found guilty of murder and given a 13-year jail sentence in 2017 after a lengthy trial and several appeals.
He had pleaded not guilty and denied killing Steenkamp in a rage, saying he mistook her for a burglar.
Therapy Required

The morning ahead of his release, Steenkamp’s mother June issued a statement saying that while she accepted the decision of the justice system and conditions of his parole, “the pain is still raw and real”.
“There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back,” she said.
“We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence.”
Offenders in South Africa are automatically eligible for parole consideration after serving half their sentence.
Pistorius lost a first bid in March when the board found he had not completed the minimum detention period required to be let out.
The Constitutional Court in October ruled that was a mistake, paving the way for a November hearing that approved his release.
As part of his parole, until the end of his sentence in 2029, Pistorius must undergo therapy for anger and gender-based violence issues.
He will also be banned from consuming alcohol and other substances, required to complete community service and also be home at certain hours of the day.
The conditions “send out a clear message that gender based violence is taken seriously” by the country’s justice system, June Steenkamp said Friday.
AFP
International
Trump deletes Jesus post of himself after outcry
The AI picture was posted late Sunday and removed Monday.Asked about the post, Trump denied that he was trying to look like Jesus Christ.
US President Donald Trump on Monday deleted a social media image apparently depicting him as Jesus after an outcry from religious leaders that he was being blasphemous.
AFP reported that the image posted on Trump’s Truth Social platform showed him in flowing red and white robes, touching the forehead of what appeared to be a sick man and with light shining from his hand and head.
An American flag waved in the background while various figures gazed up at the president in reverence.
The AI picture was posted late Sunday and removed Monday.Asked about the post, Trump denied that he was trying to look like Jesus Christ.
“I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor and had to do Red Cross,” he told journalists.
“It’s supposed to be me as a doctor, making people better. And I do make people better. I make people a lot better.
The post generated an outcry from several prominent conservative Christians who are among Trump’s biggest backers.
“I don’t know if the President thought he was being funny or if he is under the influence of some substance or what possible explanation he could have for this OUTRAGEOUS blasphemy,” Megan Basham, a conservative journalist and commentator wrote on X.
International
Pope Leo reacts to Trump’s blasts “I have no intention to debate with Trump”
Trump said Leo is “Weak on Crime, Weak on Nuclear Weapons, does not sit well with me
President Donald Trump on Sunday blasted Pope Leo XIV over the Roman Catholic pontiff’s criticism of the U.S. war with Iran.
In reaction Monday Pope Leo XIV on Monday said, ” I no intention to debate” with Donald Trump on the US-Iran war.
“I am not a politician,” the pope told reporters aboard the papal plane as they headed to Algeria for the pontiff’s first visit to Africa.
“I have no intention to debate with (Trump). The message is the same: to promote peace”, Pope emphasised.
President said in a Truth Social post he does not “want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do.”
Leo, the first U.S.-born pope, and other church leaders have also at times been sharply critical of Trump’s domestic immigration policies.
Trump linked the pope’s ascension to his return to office as president.“Leo should be thankful because, as everyone knows, he was a shocking surprise,” Trump said.
“He wasn’t on any list to be Pope, and was only put there by the Church because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump. If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.”
Trump said Leo is “Weak on Crime, Weak on Nuclear Weapons, does not sit well with me, nor does the fact that he meets with Obama Sympathizers like David Axelrod, a LOSER from the Left, who is one of those who wanted churchgoers and clerics to be arrested,” referring to a recent meeting between the pope and President Barack Obama’s former political aide.
International
Hungarian opposition wins election landslide
Results based on 81.5% of votes counted showed the center-right, pro-EU Tisza party of Peter Magyar winning 137 seats for a crucial two-thirds majority in the 199-member parliament, defeating Orban’s Fidesz party.
Photo: President of the Tisza Party, Peter Magyar / CNBC
Hungary’s veteran nationalist leader Viktor Orban conceded defeat on Sunday after a landslide election victory by the upstart opposition Tisza party, ending Orban’s 16-year rules.
Results based on 81.5% of votes counted showed the center-right, pro-EU Tisza party of Peter Magyar winning 137 seats for a crucial two-thirds majority in the 199-member parliament, defeating Orban’s Fidesz party.
“The election results are not final yet, but the situation is understandable and clear,” Orban, 62, said at the Fidesz campaign offices.
Some of his supporters who had gathered outside cried as they watched him speak on TV screens.
“The election result is painful for us, but clear.”Election officials estimated turnout at a record of 79% or more, in an election that many Hungarians saw as a watershed moment for their country.
Tisza’s Magyar, 45, had cast the vote as a choice between “East and West,” warning voters that Orban and his confrontational stance towards Brussels would take the country further away from the European mainstream.
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