Pope Francis meets pupils from international Catholic schools in Rome. EPA
Pope Francis meets pupils from international Catholic schools in Rome. EPA
Pope Francis meets pupils from international Catholic schools in Rome. EPA
Pope Francis meets pupils from international Catholic schools in Rome. EPA

'Tired' pope clears schedule after suffering fever


Simon Rushton
  • English
  • Arabic

Pope Francis cleared his schedule on Friday after coming down with a fever, two months after he was treated for bronchitis in hospital

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin attributed the fever to the Pope greeting people in a particularly large crowd at his school foundation on Thursday.

“The Pope was tired, yesterday he had a very busy day. He wanted to greet all of them and probably, at a certain point, lost his resistance,” Cardinal Parolin told LaPresse news agency.

Pope Francis, 86, had eight meetings on Thursday, according to his published schedule.

His morning audiences are usually reserved for heads of states, associations and clerics, while his afternoons are devoted to work and private meetings.

Next on the Pope's schedule is Sunday's Mass at St Peter's Basilica to celebrate Pentecost, followed by the traditional Regina Coeli prayer.

“Due to a feverish state, Pope Francis did not receive an audience this morning,” said Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni.

It was unclear who the Pope had been expected to meet, as his agenda was not made public on Friday, as is customary.

On Monday, he is scheduled to meet Italian President Sergio Mattarella.

Pope Francis, who has been the leader of the world's 1.3 billion Catholics for a decade, has suffered increasing health issues over the past year, including persistent pain in his right knee, sciatica and his recent hospital stay for bronchitis.

In late March, Pope Francis was admitted to hospital in Rome after having breathing difficulties, and stayed for three nights.

He went on to participate in Holy Week and Easter services, the most important week in the Christian calendar.

For about a year, the Pope has had to use a wheelchair due to recurring pain in his knee that he has said cannot be treated through surgery.

The Pope acknowledged last July, however, that he needed to slow down.

“At my age and with this limitation, I have to save myself a little bit to be able to serve the church,” he said at the time.

“Or, alternatively, to think about the possibility of stepping aside.”

In March, however, he insisted that he had no current plans to quit.

Types of policy

Term life insurance: this is the cheapest and most-popular form of life cover. You pay a regular monthly premium for a pre-agreed period, typically anything between five and 25 years, or possibly longer. If you die within that time, the policy will pay a cash lump sum, which is typically tax-free even outside the UAE. If you die after the policy ends, you do not get anything in return. There is no cash-in value at any time. Once you stop paying premiums, cover stops.

Whole-of-life insurance: as its name suggests, this type of life cover is designed to run for the rest of your life. You pay regular monthly premiums and in return, get a guaranteed cash lump sum whenever you die. As a result, premiums are typically much higher than one term life insurance, although they do not usually increase with age. In some cases, you have to keep up premiums for as long as you live, although there may be a cut-off period, say, at age 80 but it can go as high as 95. There are penalties if you don’t last the course and you may get a lot less than you paid in.

Critical illness cover: this pays a cash lump sum if you suffer from a serious illness such as cancer, heart disease or stroke. Some policies cover as many as 50 different illnesses, although cancer triggers by far the most claims. The payout is designed to cover major financial responsibilities such as a mortgage or children’s education fees if you fall ill and are unable to work. It is cost effective to combine it with life insurance, with the policy paying out once if you either die or suffer a serious illness.

Income protection: this pays a replacement income if you fall ill and are unable to continue working. On the best policies, this will continue either until you recover, or reach retirement age. Unlike critical illness cover, policies will typically pay out for stress and musculoskeletal problems such as back trouble.

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Specs

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Karwaan

Producer: Ronnie Screwvala

Director: Akarsh Khurana

Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar

Rating: 4/5

Match info:

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Ronaldo (4')

Morocco 0

Company%20Profile
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PROFILE OF HALAN

Started: November 2017

Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport and logistics

Size: 150 employees

Investment: approximately $8 million

Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar

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AT4 Ultimate, as tested

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How Apple's credit card works

The Apple Card looks different from a traditional credit card — there's no number on the front and the users' name is etched in metal. The card expands the company's digital Apple Pay services, marrying the physical card to a virtual one and integrating both with the iPhone. Its attributes include quick sign-up, elimination of most fees, strong security protections and cash back.

What does it cost?

Apple says there are no fees associated with the card. That means no late fee, no annual fee, no international fee and no over-the-limit fees. It also said it aims to have among the lowest interest rates in the industry. Users must have an iPhone to use the card, which comes at a cost. But they will earn cash back on their purchases — 3 per cent on Apple purchases, 2 per cent on those with the virtual card and 1 per cent with the physical card. Apple says it is the only card to provide those rewards in real time, so that cash earned can be used immediately.

What will the interest rate be?

The card doesn't come out until summer but Apple has said that as of March, the variable annual percentage rate on the card could be anywhere from 13.24 per cent to 24.24 per cent based on creditworthiness. That's in line with the rest of the market, according to analysts

What about security? 

The physical card has no numbers so purchases are made with the embedded chip and the digital version lives in your Apple Wallet on your phone, where it's protected by fingerprints or facial recognition. That means that even if someone steals your phone, they won't be able to use the card to buy things.

Is it easy to use?

Apple says users will be able to sign up for the card in the Wallet app on their iPhone and begin using it almost immediately. It also tracks spending on the phone in a more user-friendly format, eliminating some of the gibberish that fills a traditional credit card statement. Plus it includes some budgeting tools, such as tracking spending and providing estimates of how much interest could be charged on a purchase to help people make an informed decision. 

* Associated Press 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile

Date started: December 24, 2018

Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer

Based: Dubai Media City

Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)

Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech

Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year

Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020

What is cyberbullying?

Cyberbullying or online bullying could take many forms such as sending unkind or rude messages to someone, socially isolating people from groups, sharing embarrassing pictures of them, or spreading rumors about them.

Cyberbullying can take place on various platforms such as messages, on social media, on group chats, or games.

Parents should watch out for behavioural changes in their children.

When children are being bullied they they may be feel embarrassed and isolated, so parents should watch out for signs of signs of depression and anxiety

Updated: May 26, 2023, 5:58 PM`