The participants of the Artemis II mission could set a record today by being further from Earth than any other human before them during their lunar flyby. Yesterday, the crew members saw the far side of the Moon. Whoever holds weapons, lay them down; whoever has the power to start wars, choose peace, urged Pope Leo XIV during his sermon to the City and the world.
The crew of the Orion spacecraft has taken new images of the Moon, including the area called the Orientale basin, located at the boundary between the near and far sides of the celestial body. This is the first time human eyes have seen this place fully, stated the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which published the image. The astronauts also described that they could see the far side of the Moon for the first time. The four participants of the Artemis II mission will be the first crew to fly around the Moon since 1972. The crew is expected to reach the Moon today. They will orbit it and then head back to Earth, reported the server Ceskenoviny.cz.
In his first Easter message since becoming the head of the Catholic Church last year, Leo XIV called for dialogue and urged those with the power to wage wars to choose peace, CNN reported. He criticized the indifference towards wars and the deaths they cause.
“Whoever has the power to start wars, let them choose peace, peace achieved through dialogue and not force,”
said the Pope, adding:
“We are getting used to violence, surrendering to it."
According to Vatican media, around 50,000 people listened to the Pope at St. Peter's Square and its surroundings. The Pope then greeted the audience in several languages including English, Chinese, Spanish, French, and Polish.
American President Donald Trump yesterday vulgarly threatened Tehran with attacks on Iranian power plants and bridges if the Hormuz Strait is not released. In an interview with Fox News, he also stated that a deal with Iran on Monday is possible and that Tehran is negotiating. On Saturday, the White House chief declared that Iran has 48 hours to reach an agreement or release the strait, which is crucial for the transportation of oil and gas from the Persian Gulf, otherwise, hell will descend on this Middle Eastern country according to him. Oman and Iran held talks on Saturday about sailing through the Hormuz Strait, wrote the portal Českenoviny.cz.
Higher fuel prices are currently impacting the operation of e-shops primarily through more expensive delivery, stated the server Ceskenoviny.cz. According to the Executive Director of the Association for Electronic Commerce Jan Vetyška, e-shops are not planning to raise prices of goods and services at this moment. According to experts, the war in the Middle East could have a greater impact, along with rising fuel prices, on those e-shops that sell goods from Asia, particularly from China.
The Chinese Communist Party announced that it has launched an investigation into its former high-ranking member in Xinjiang over suspicions of disciplinary and legal violations. He is a member of the party's central committee. From 2021 to 2025, he served as a secretary in the Xinjiang region in northwest China. He previously served as director of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission and as deputy party chief in Guangdong province. It is not yet clear what exactly he is alleged to have done. However, in any case, he is another high-ranking official who was dismissed this year, noted the AP agency.
Sources: Ceskenoviny.cz, AP, CNN