Briefs | Italy Pope pauses in silent prayer before Shroud of Turin

Pope Francis paused in silent prayer before the Shroud of Turin yesterday, becoming the latest of hundreds of thousands of people who have come this year to Turin’s cathedral to view the burial linen some believe covered the body of Jesus after crucifixion. Francis sat for several minutes before the shroud, contained in a protective glass case. He lowered his head at times in apparent reflection and occasionally gazed up at the 4.3-meter long cloth. Then he took a few steps, placed his hand on the case, and walked away without comment. Later, after celebrating Mass for faithful in a packed Turin square, Francis gave his impression of the cloth as he spoke of the love Jesus had for humanity when being crucified. The shroud’s display began April 19 and runs through June 24.

Somalia – Soldier, 4 militants killed in al-Shabab attack

A Somali soldier and four militants were killed Sunday as an al-Qaida-linked extremist group tried to attack a training compound used for intelligence officials in Mogadishu, a police officer said. The attack started with a suicide car bombing outside the intelligence school, which killed two attackers and a soldier, police Capt. Mohamed Hussein said yesterday. He said soldiers then shot two gunmen who had seemingly lost their way and stormed a civilian house close to their target. The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group, which is waging an insurgency against Somalia’s Western-backed weak government, claimed responsibility for the attack through its radio station. Al-Shabab has vowed it would step up attacks against government and African Union forces in Somalia during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

USA – Hunt for escaped killers shifts after possible sighting

The search for two convicted killers in New York shifted after possible sightings in the southern part of the state, 565 kilometers from the prison where the men escaped two weeks ago. New York State Police spokesman Beau Duffy said officers were investigating a possible sighting of the prisoners in Allegany County near the Pennsylvania border. A person spotted two men Saturday near a railroad line in the town of Friendship, state police said. David Sweat and Richard Matt escaped June 6 from the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, near the Canadian border. The two broke out of the maximum-security prison using power tools and leaving behind dummies under bedcovers in their adjoining cells. A door-to-door search involving up to 800 law enforcement officers has been underway since then, concentrated in a several-kilometer radius of woods and fields around the prison in the Adirondacks.