May 2, 2024 UPDATE
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Newsroom, 02.05.2024, 20:00
HOLY THURSDAY Orthodox and Eastern-Catholic Christians in Romania celebrated Holy Thursday, which commemorates the Washing of the Feet and the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles. A mass devoted to the 12 Gospels was held during the evening, while the Lamentation at the Tomb, a unique religious service, will be held on Friday night. On Wednesday, the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel, conveyed a special Easter message, saying that the Resurrection of Christ is a celebration of the pious and merciful love of Christ, who overcame hatred, violence and death and gave people eternal life. This makes Easter a celebration of forgiveness, peace and joy, the Patriarch said, urging people to share the news of the Lord’s Resurrection with everyone around through good deeds, love and peace.
PUBLIC ORDER Over 150,000 Romanians will take part in hundreds of events around the country during Easter break. To ensure public order, the interior ministry has increased the number of staff on duty, including gendarmes, police and fire-fighters. The National Cyber Security Directorate also warns that on holidays people are less careful with e-commerce platforms and they may become victims of online scams.
YOUTH DAY Lawmakers will know their actions were well-inspired when young Romanians at home and abroad choose Romania to build their future, the PM Marcel Ciolacu said on Youth Day. We must provide everyone with equal opportunities and development prospects, including at institutional level, the PM added. Marcel Ciolacu says he believes in young people, with whom he has been in constant dialogue since taking office, via representative associations or through government internship programmes, aimed at familiarising young people with decision-making processes at the level of the Romanian government and subordinated institutions.
AWARD Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, has been designated as one of the recipients of the 2024 Atlantic Council Distinguished Leadership Awards, which will be handed in a special gala held on May 8 in Washington. The Romanian president will be honoured for his remarkable career, exemplary leadership of Romania, and his transatlantic and European leadership role. The other recipients of the award are the U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Christopher G. Cavoli, and the Academy Award-winning actress and producer Michelle Yeoh. Each year, the Distinguished Leadership Awards brings together more than six hundred policy, business, military, artistic, and civil-society leaders to celebrate individuals, including policy leaders, business executives, military staff and artistic and humanitarian champions. Past recipients include the US presidents George W. Bush, William J. Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and then-Vice President Joe Biden, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, the current and former International Monetary Fund managing directors Kristalina Georgieva and Christine Lagarde. Set up in 1961, the Atlantic Council is a non-profit organisation whose staff must observe high standards of personal and professional integrity, openness and honesty in communications and interactions with one another as well as with other organisations, government officials, the media and the public.
TRANSPLANT Two Romanians have a chance for a new life after having received organs from a Bulgarian donor on Thursday. According to the National Transplant Agency, the organs were sent to Romania because there were no compatible beneficiaries in Bulgaria, and the 2 countries have a cooperation protocol in this field. The surgeries were performed in Iaşi (eastern Romania), and the 2 patients’ condition is good.
GAZA The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on the Palestinian organisation Hamas to accept a truce in Gaza, reiterating the United States’ opposition towards an Israeli offensive on Rafah (south). During his 7th mission to the Middle East since the conflict broke out, Antony Blinken visited Israel, expressing determination to reach a consensus “right now” to free the hostages held by Hamas for the last seven months. The US official met with a number of Israeli officials, including the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Israel, Antony Blinken argued that, while Washington firmly supports Israel’s right to self-defence, it opposes the idea of an all-out attack on Rafah, insisting on continuing to expand humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian population in Gaza. (AMP, VP)
