News from February 27, 2025 at 2 AM

On February 26, the Vatican reported a slight improvement in Pope Francis' critical condition over the past 24 hours. The 88-year-old pontiff, hospitalized with pneumonia in both lungs, continues to receive oxygen and perform breathing exercises. A CT scan on February 25 showed normal progression of pulmonary inflammation, and blood tests on February 26 confirmed the improvement. However, the prognosis remains reserved. Since being admitted on February 14, Pope Francis has been handling Church matters from his hospital suite for 13 consecutive days. Catholics worldwide are praying for him, with doctors warning that his recovery could be lengthy.

A massive power outage struck Chile on Tuesday afternoon, plunging most of the country into darkness and affecting millions of people. Public transportation in some areas was disrupted, mobile phone services were interrupted, and nearly 300,000 students were unable to attend school. President Boric stated that 8 million households were affected, with 4.15 million gradually regaining power, and blamed the incident on the private company managing the grid. The government declared a state of emergency, imposed a curfew from 10 PM to 6 AM the next day, and deployed armed forces. By February 26th, 94% of the national grid had been restored. The Minister of the Interior attributed the outage to a disruption in a high-voltage transmission line in the central-northern region, ruling out cyber-attacks. The blackout impacted copper mining operations, affecting the global metal market, marking the largest such incident in 15 years.

In 2024, South Korea's total fertility rate increased for the first time in nine years, with the number of newborns reaching 238,300, an increase of 8,300 (3.6%) from 2023, and the fertility rate rising from 0.72 to 0.75. The Korean Statistical Office attributes this increase to the growing population of women in their 30s and a rise in marriages. In 2024, marriage registrations reached 222,000, a nearly 15% year-on-year increase. However, South Korea's fertility rate remains far below international standards, with a natural population decrease of 120,000. Experts suggest seizing the period with a higher number of women in their 30s to optimize policies and social environments.

On the 26th local time, the health department of Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, announced that a military plane crashed in the city of Omdurman west of Khartoum on the evening of the 25th, resulting in 46 deaths, including military personnel and civilians. The plane crashed into a residential area shortly after taking off from the Wadi Sayyidna military base, causing a massive explosion. It is reported that there were 4 crew members and several senior officers on board, and the crash may have been due to technical issues.

A court in Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced Milorad Dodik, the head of Republika Srpska (RS), to one year in prison and imposed a six-year ban on political activity for ignoring the decisions of the High Representative of the International Community, Christian Schmidt. Dodik revealed that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban called to express their support. Vucic will visit Banja Luka tonight. The verdict is from the court of first instance and is subject to appeal, with the final ruling expected by the end of the year. Bosnia and Herzegovina is effectively governed by a High Representative, but the RS leadership does not recognize Schmidt's legitimacy. Dodik has threatened to declare independence if Schmidt continues to promote laws that infringe on the rights of Bosnian Serbs.

On February 26 local time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced that Russian and US representatives will hold talks in Istanbul, Turkey on February 27. The meeting will focus on issues related to the operations of the two countries' embassies. The talks aim to address matters concerning the functioning of the respective embassies. The news was reported by CCTV correspondent Xu Hongbo.

On February 26, Romanian police detained former independent presidential candidate Calin Georgescu and took him to the Prosecutor General's Office for questioning. Following his detention, a group of parliamentarians from the Alliance for the Union of Romanians, which supports his candidacy, led by party leader George Simion, announced their intention to visit the Prosecutor General's Office to demand explanations, with gendarmes currently stationed around the office building. Additionally, Romania's highest court, the High Court of Cassation, rejected Georgescu's request to disregard the declassified documents from the Romanian intelligence services, which were the basis for annulling the presidential elections last December. The Romanian courts have definitively rejected Georgescu's demand for a resumption of the second round of the presidential election. On November 24, 2024, Romania held the first round of the presidential election, in which Georgescu received a plurality. On December 6, the Romanian Constitutional Court annulled the entire electoral process and ordered a new election following the declassification of documents by the Romanian intelligence services, which revealed, among other things, that Georgescu had illegally financed his campaign. The government has acknowledged the Constitutional Court's decision and set the dates for a re-run of the presidential elections on May 4 and May 18 this year.

American actress Michelle Trachtenberg has died at the age of 39. Police in Manhattan responded to an emergency call on Wednesday morning and found her unconscious and unresponsive, pronouncing her dead at the scene. Trachtenberg was renowned for her roles as Dawn Summers in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and Georgina Sparks in 'Gossip Girl'. Her family confirmed her death and requested privacy. Authorities stated that her death is not considered suspicious, with the medical examiner to determine the cause. Trachtenberg began acting at nine on Nickelodeon's 'The Adventures of Pete & Pete' and received several nominations in the early 2000s for 'Buffy'. She also starred in films like 'EuroTrip' and 'Ice Princess'. Colleagues, including Rosie O'Donnell and Ed Westwick, have paid tribute to her.

On January 20, 2025, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced that the Washington Post's editorial pages would focus on supporting 'personal liberties and free markets,' and would no longer publish opposing views. The move received praise from some in President Donald Trump's administration, such as Elon Musk, but was criticized by current and former Post staffers, including former editor Marty Baron. Bezos noted that editorial page editor David Shipley resigned over the new policy. The shift led to at least 250,000 readers canceling their subscriptions. Bezos has been criticized for his close ties to Trump, with Amazon donating to Trump's inaugural fund and Bezos attending his inauguration. Multiple staffers, including cartoonist Ann Telnaes and columnist Jennifer Rubin, have resigned in protest.

On the morning of February 25, a bridge under construction on the Sejong Expressway in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, collapsed, resulting in four deaths and six injuries. During the incident, five 50-meter-high concrete structures collapsed after being lifted by cranes. Among the deceased were two Chinese citizens, and five of the injured were severely wounded, including one Chinese citizen. The bridge connected two mountainous areas, with the bridge deck collapsing from a height of 50 meters. South Korean Acting President Choi Sang-moo ordered all available resources and personnel to be mobilized for the rescue. The main contractor, Hyundai Engineering & Construction, apologized for the accident and is cooperating with authorities to address site issues and investigate the cause.

In 2024, Canada reached its highest level of deportations in about a decade, predominantly targeting individuals whose refugee claims were rejected. By late November, the number of deportations had surpassed the highest record since 2015. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government has aimed to demonstrate a tough stance on immigration amid a backlog of refugee claims and public backlash over immigration exacerbating housing shortages. The Canada Border Services Agency attributed the surge in deportations to a significant increase in asylum applications since 2020. Between January 1 and November 19, 2024, Canada deported 7,300 people, an 8.4% increase over 2023 and a 95% increase over 2022. Of these, approximately 79% were deported due to rejected refugee claims, 11% for non-compliance with stay conditions, and 7% for committing crimes. The government has allocated an additional C$30.5 million over three years to enhance deportation efforts.

On February 26 local time, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated that over 20,000 undocumented immigrants were arrested in the first month of Trump's presidency. According to an internal memo obtained by Reuters, Trump has taken measures to increase arrests, including instructing Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to apprehend and deport thousands of unaccompanied migrant children. On February 25, the U.S. Immigration Service announced that all foreigners in the U.S. must register with the immigration authorities, with non-compliance leading to criminal and civil penalties. The Department of Homeland Security will soon release the forms and procedures for registration, and from February 25, 2025, foreigners required to register should create an account with the U.S. Immigration Service.

According to reports from NBC and The New York Times, some Apple iPhone users have noticed that when they voice-input the English word 'Racist,' the automatic dictation feature briefly displays the word 'Trump.' This issue has sparked controversy, with Apple being accused of 'political bias.' An Apple spokesperson responded on the 25th, stating that the company is aware of the issue with its voice recognition model and is working to fix the bug. NBC reporters tested the issue and found it did not occur every time, and some users reported no similar problems.