The big picture The Caribbean nation is in the grip of a deepening security, humanitarian and governance crisis. Armed gangs control large areas of the capital Port-au-Prince and beyond, displacing families and restricting access to schools, health care and basic services. Poverty is getting worse for […]
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
سيتم إغلاق مركز المؤتمرات التابع لكنيسي الأيام الأخيرة في سولت ليك سيتي بالكامل أمام الجمهور اعتبارًا From 30 to 2026 to 1 to 2027 (from 30 to 2026 to 1 to 2027) الكبرى الأخرى)، استعدادًا للمؤتمر. The date is 2027. سيقتصر الوصول حصريًا على المؤتمر العام في أبريل […]
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
The Conference Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City will be completely closed to the public from March 30, 2026 through March 1, 2027 (except for general conference and other major events), in preparation for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration scheduled for 2027. During this time […]
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
The Conference Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City will be completely closed to the public from March 30, 2026 through March 1, 2027 (except for general conference and other major events), in preparation for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration scheduled for 2027. During this time […]
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
The Conference Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City will be fully closed to the public from March 30, 2026, through March 1, 2027 (except for general conference and other major events), in preparation for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration planned for 2027.
During this period, access will be limited exclusively to April and October 2026 general conference and major scheduled events such as Luz de las Naciones and the Tabernacle Choir Christmas concerts. Conference Center parking and access to parking elevators will remain open and operational.
The purpose of the closure is “to facilitate critical construction, infrastructure upgrades and exhibit development in preparation for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration,” stated a communication sent to Church employees on Wednesday, February 18, 2026.
“This operational pause is essential to allow project teams to execute a significantly expanded scope of work and ensure the facility is fully prepared to support the elevated guest experience planned for 2027.”
All Church departmental use of the Conference Center Building — including meetings, trainings and social functions — also will be suspended for the duration of the closure.
The Conference Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City. The building will be closed from March 30, 2026, through March 1, 2027, for upgrades needed in preparation for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration.© 2026 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. |
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Scaffolding is being removed from portions of the Salt Lake Temple, revealing more of the historic exterior. Visitors to Temple Square can now see more of the temple’s stonework with the scaffolding gone. Finish work in the baptistries is coming along with carpet, pews, and chandeliers recently added.
Temple Square guests are invited to visit Temple Square to see the Easter displays highlighting the life and ministry of Jesus Christ that will be installed beginning at the end of February. Exhibits and visual installations will focus on His teachings, miracles, Atonement and Resurrection.
People from around the world are invited to take part in the Salt Lake Temple Celebration which will occur from April through October 2027.
Ukrainian drones continue to inflict incredibly high losses on Russian forces. And quite deep beyond the frontlines, too.
The UN Security Council meets this morning to discuss Sudan as the war nears its third year, with fighting intensifying across multiple regions and civilians facing deepening humanitarian catastrophe. Senior UN political and humanitarian officials are expected to brief ministers on a conflict marked by shifting front lines, advanced weaponry and widespread displacement. The meeting comes amid fresh warnings that atrocities in Darfur, including acts bearing the “hallmarks of genocide” in El Fasher, signal a dangerous escalation. Follow the live coverage below, UN News App users click here.
The 45 participants represented LWF member churches in the South Asia sub-region: NELC, and two churches in India that joined the LWF in 2025: the Bodo Evangelical Lutheran Church (BELC) and Manipur Evangelical Lutheran Church (MELC) of India.
The workshop focused on foundational elements of Lutheran theology and identity. “In addition to deepening our understanding of Lutheran identity, this seminar also reflected strong collaboration among three LWF departments, the Office of the General Secretary; Department for Theology, Mission and Justice; and World Service, working together in unity and shared commitment,” said Rev. Dr Rospita Siahaan, LWF Regional Secretary for Asia.
The workshop embodied the LWF’s commitment to deepening Lutheran identity through shared theological reflection—a practice the LWF has engaged in throughout its history. Rev. Dr Songram Basumatary, Principal of Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and Research Institute in Chennai, India, highlighted that as Lutherans, “we are united in our common confession” and saved by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
“And it is through this liberating power of love that we are freed to serve others,” said Rev. Dr Joshuva Peter, Executive Secretary of the United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI). These fundamental Lutheran values of freedom, love, and service took on renewed significance in Kathmandu, offering a counter-witness to the discrimination, exclusion, and injustice present in many societies today.
Participants also reflected on the dynamic nature of Lutheran identity, exploring how a shared Lutheran tradition is embodied through a diversity of languages, cultures, forms of worship, spirituality, service, and expressions of public witness.
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If an online purchase turns into a scam—no delivery, fake goods, or a seller who disappears—you still have practical options in the EU. This guide walks you through the fastest steps to protect your money, document what happened, and use EU complaint channels (especially for cross-border shopping) to push for refunds and enforcement.
It’s early evening. You’re at the kitchen table, checking your order status again. The tracking link leads nowhere. The seller’s inbox is silent. You realise you may have paid into a trap—one that thousands of Europeans encounter every day when shopping online.
EU institutions have repeatedly warned that fraud and scams are a large-scale problem, with Commission reporting pointing to “almost half” of EU consumers encountering fraud or scams online in 2024. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3} The Commission also maintains a consumer data overview that highlights the persistence of online scams across the Single Market. :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4}
For a wider consumer-rights lens—especially when you’re travelling, booking, or dealing with cross-border services—see The European Times’ consumer-focused explainer Travelling in Europe: What to Know in 2026.
How many people are affected yearly?
EU consumer data reported by the European Commission shows that 45% of consumers encountered online scams in the past year (reported for 2024 in the Commission’s consumer data/Scoreboard context). See the Commission’s consumer data overview here, and the Commission update on fighting online consumer fraud here.
Online scams are not just private misfortune—they test trust in the Single Market. Using documented complaints, payment disputes, and EU-level channels helps protect your own rights and strengthens the enforcement ecosystem that keeps cross-border commerce workable for everyone.
“Just over a month ago, Sudan reached a horrific milestone: 1,000 days of a brutal war that has nearly destroyed the third largest country in Africa,” Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs said.
It has been “1,000 days of staggering violence and unimaginable suffering” and “1,000 days of total impunity for the perpetrators of a long list of atrocities and war crimes.”
As the conflict approaches its third anniversary in April, fighting continues to spread. Ms. DiCarlo said front lines have fluctuated in North Darfur, North Kordofan, South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, with drone attacks and aerial strikes by both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) becoming “a defining feature of this conflict.”
“The consequences for civilians and civilian infrastructure are severe. No corner of Sudan is safe from the threat of attack,” Ms. DiCarlo warned.
In North Kordofan, the state capital El Obeid is besieged from three sides by the RSF, while the SAF have sought to reassert their presence in and around the city. “Ground fighting inside El Obeid would have catastrophic consequences and deal a significant blow to the prospects for a ceasefire,” she said.
South Kordofan has also seen intensified fighting around Kadugli and Dilling. Although recent announcements suggested sieges there had been broken, humanitarian access remains uncertain.
Sudanese refugees arrive at the border town of Adré, Chad. (file)
Edem Wosornu, Director of the Crisis Response Division at the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said the situation in much of Kordofan and Darfur has deteriorated since the start of the year.
“In recent weeks, we have seen an alarming escalation of drone attacks across the three Kordofan states, leading to more civilian deaths and injuries and forcing families to flee their homes,” she said. Over one million people are now displaced in the region alone.
Food insecurity is deepening. UN-backed food security analysis indicates that famine conditions “may be prevalent” in Kadugli and Dilling. In North Darfur, acute malnutrition rates in Um Baru and Kernoi localities exceeded famine thresholds in December.
The toll on relief workers is mounting. Since the conflict began on 15 April 2023, some 130 humanitarian workers – nearly all Sudanese – have been killed.
“Aid workers and humanitarian assets must never be targets,” Ms. Wosornu stressed, noting that four incidents in 10 days recently left humanitarian personnel killed or injured while delivering food.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that in one week this month, three health facilities were attacked in South Kordofan, killing 31 people, including children and health workers.
Violence against women and girls has reached “catastrophic levels,” Ms. Wosornu said. Demand for prevention and response services has surged by 350 per cent since the war began, and documented cases of sexual violence have nearly tripled.
In Darfur, thousands of people have fled fighting to seek refuge in Tawila.
The briefing came hours after a UN human rights fact-finding mechanism warned that atrocities committed by the RSF in El Fasher in October 2025 were “indicators of a genocidal path,” raising fears of similar patterns elsewhere.
Ms. DiCarlo said the events there were preventable. While the city was under siege for more than a year, UN officials “repeatedly sounded the alarm about the risk of mass atrocities. But the warnings were not heeded.”
High Commissioner Volker Türk has now warned of the possibility of similar crimes in Kordofan, where civilians face risks of summary executions, sexual violence, arbitrary detention and family separation.
Concluding her briefing, Ms. DiCarlo urged stronger international resolve.
“Unified messaging and strong action by the Security Council is more important than ever,” she said. “Pressure must be brought on the parties and those who back them to end the war now.”
Ms. Wosornu echoed that appeal, calling on Council members to use their influence to protect civilians, ensure humanitarian access and “work together in pursuit of an immediate stop to the fighting, to stem the flow of weapons into Sudan, and to press for the lasting, inclusive peace that the people of Sudan so desperately need.”
