OPINION

The University of Copenhagen is complicit in Israel’s genocide in Gaza and is now trying to criminalize those who protest it

I was arrested with four other students and Greta Thunberg during a protest advocating an academic boycott of Israel, and we now face up to six years in prison. This is about criminalizing dissent amid a genocide, not upholding the law

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By Aleksandra Milanović 

June 6, 2026 

MONDOWEISS

University of Copenhagen, May 2011, © Gerhard Huber, under Creative Commons

The click of handcuffs. The barking of police dogs. The slam of detention cell doors. These are the sounds of academic freedom being criminalized in Denmark

On September 4, 2024, I stood with four fellow University of Copenhagen students and Greta Thunberg inside our own university administration building, protesting for an academic boycott of Israel. Within minutes, university staff called heavily armed police on us. The rest of the students had been forcefully taken outside to be registered by the police. The surreal reality of being arrested on our own campus for demanding ethical university conduct still doesn’t feel real to me. Because it shouldn’t have happened at all.

Now, on June 24-25, 2026, all six of us will face criminal prosecution under Danish Penal Code Section 264.1.1 for illegal trespassing. At our court hearing, we are expected to admit guilt and pay a fine. If we don’t, it will be expanded into a full court case, where we could face a possible prison sentence of up to six years if found guilty. The charges against two students have been expanded to include unrelated offenses, demonstrating clear political targeting of people standing up for Palestine. This is about criminalizing principled dissent during genocide, not about trespassing.



I was separated from the others in a police car by two police officers. At the police station, I was put in a solitary detention cell with no information on what the process was or how long I had to be there. Exhausted from my first arrest, I slept through my detention hours. After approximately four hours, I was released and went home to prepare for an interview with Al Jazeera. The escalation, police violence, and repression we experienced are nothing compared to what Palestinians, particularly those in Israeli prisons, endure daily.

Our September 4 protest wasn’t unsupported nor isolated. Shortly after our arrests, 600 university staff members from UCPH and other Danish institutions published a petition calling for an academic boycott of Israel, demanding that we not face internal prosecution, and asserting that police have no place at student protests. This overwhelming institutional support demonstrates that our demands reflect widespread faculty concern about human rights violations.

Since 2021, Students Against the Occupation (SMB) has engaged in conversations, negotiations, encampments, and mobilized the university staff, calling on UCPH to cut ties in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Palestine. During the Rafah Garden student encampment in May-June 2024, students negotiated divestment from several UN-blacklisted companies. UCPH announced the divestments after abruptly ending negotiations. But when we took action in September for the academic boycott of Israel, the response was swift repression.

The aftermath of the September 4 protest reveals a pattern of escalated institutional repression despite occupations and blockades being accepted protest practices at UCPH. The administration worked expeditiously with Copenhagen police to identify arrested students and to examine footage from Danish media. They demanded a list of names from the police to initiate disciplinary hearings. They even targeted the SMB media representatives standing on the street, who were not part of the protest. It was about systematically crushing dissent.

I was called into a disciplinary hearing based solely on being identified over social media, with no evidence that I broke the code of conduct by engaging in threatening behavior toward staff. The administration preemptively issued a warning, creating a climate of fear in which many hesitated to protest on university grounds, fearing they would lose their degrees. The arrest and disciplinary hearing only motivated me further to engage with activism and continue documenting the UCPH’s complicity and ongoing repression.

A week after our arrests, I met with Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs Lars Løkke Rasmussen, along with three other students (one arrested with us on September 4), to discuss an academic boycott and weapons embargo to Israel. His response was telling: It is a task of each university to implement an academic boycott, as cutting academic ties with Israel is not against the foreign policy of Denmark. This was not the case in 2022 when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs mandated that all Danish universities sever academic ties with Russia and Belarus. This Palestine exceptionalism exposes the moral bankruptcy of institutional complicity during genocide and UCPH’s ongoing hypocrisy.

Our university’s complicity extends beyond academia. The newly built MAERSK Tower at the Faculty Health and Medical Sciences, co-funded by A.P. Møller Fond with 885 million DKK, bears the name of the world’s largest shipping company, currently transporting weapons to Israel. MAERSK ships HEMTT vehicles, missile casings, and F-35 fighter jet parts, to name a few, used in obliterating Palestinians in Gaza as well as transporting goods to illegal settlements on the West Bank. When universities integrate and collaborate with companies fueling genocide, they become active participants in upholding oppression, neocolonialism, and imperialism.

Recently, the UCPH student newspaper, Uniavisen, uncovered a draft “scope paper” stating that “UCPH must be proactive and engage in the defense and security agenda.” Documents show that the defense and security agenda already has a significant extent at the university. At present, the faculties are showing concerns regarding defense research. My faculty, the Humanities Faculty, mentions potential opposition to the conduct of commissioned research by the weapon industry, defense authorities, or research supporting war. This further proves that UCPH is not a neutral institution. According to the plan, UCPH’s board will approve the document and start the work of an implementation plan on June 18, 2026, which ensures the university’s shift toward military and defense research.

The university administration still has the option to retract the police report and prevent criminalization. Kristian C. Lauta, the UCPH vice-chancellor, states in a recent Uniavisen interview that they are not able to. Lauta and the rest of the administration refuse, making us the first UCPH students to face legal prosecution for political protest simply for standing for ethical university praxis and human rights.

As we prepare for our trial, we stand not just as defendants, but as witnesses to the moral corruption of institutional power. The world will be watching whether Danish academia prioritizes justice or protects complicity. The choice belongs to the university administration, the legal system, and ultimately to all who believe that academic freedom must include the freedom to challenge oppression, neocolonialism, and imperialism.

The click of handcuffs shouldn’t be the sound of academic freedom. Let that be the last sound we hear.

Aleksandra Milanović
Aleksandra Milanović is a Danish-Serbian media producer, multidisciplinary artist, and activist based in Copenhagen.


UK

“Have you noticed how we only win the World Cup under a Labour government?”

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JUNE 5, 2026

Politicians seldom get it right when they talk about football, argues Mark Perryman.

In March 1966 Harold Wilson’s Labour Party won a landslide victory and just four months later Harold was there to celebrate when England for the first, and to date last, time lifted the World Cup at Wembley. 

Never mind the (disgraced) Peter Mandelson, England’s victory spurred Harold to the greatest piece of Labour spin-doctoring ever. Of course, Harold had been at the Final; infamously Harold sent one of his advisers to the BBC matchday studio to suggest he join commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme for some half-time punditry – an invitation that was promptly turned down. Perhaps they lacked the silky charm of (disgraced)  Peter Mandelson?!

Four years later, most unwisely Labour risked their 1970 General Election chances by choosing a date slap-bang in the middle of England’s defence of their World Cup at Mexico 1970.  The quarter-final defeat to West Germany  was widely blamed for Labour’s defeat just four days later.

Yes, really. Wilson’s Minister of Sport, and former League referee, Denis Howell, was better-placed than most to justify the impact: “The moment goalkeeper Bonetti made his third and final hash of it on the Sunday, everything simultaneously began to go wrong for Labour for the following Thursday.”

Labour and football, eh? Be careful what you wish for. Still at least 1970 General Election victor Ted Heath and his sundry Tory Prime Minister successors have proved incapable of robbing Harold’s sound-bite of it’s enduring truth.

But any kind of relationship between politics and international football in the particular context of England has a broader purpose than simply, win lose or draw supposedly being dependent on the party in government at the time. 

There is one crucial word that Harold gets spectacularly wrong: ‘we’. Great Britain is unique in international football, represented by four – and for the purposes of football at least – independent nations: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.  It doesn’t require either pedantry or nationalism to recognise this. It’s a fact perhaps lost on Harold, or Keir, who every time a summer football tournament comes around will promptly, and very publicly, choose an England shirt for his go-to leisure wear. This tells us, or at least it should, everything we need to know about Labour Unionism.

Gordon Brown might have thought he was being helpful travelling out to  support England at World Cup 2006 as the British Prime Minister. Precious few England fans were won over while in his native Scotland it went down like a lead proverbial. Of course, not all Scotland fans are nationalists. But when in 1992 Jim Sillars lost his Govan seat that he’d won in an infamous 1988 SNP by-election defeat of Labour and angrily described the Tartan Army as “90-minute nationalists,” it was a very different era to now. The SNP are no longer a minor party, but, via the Scottish Parliament, a governing party with a formidable number of MPs at Westminster. If Harold could have got away with ‘we’ in 1966, in Scotland, Wales and the North of Ireland, he certainly couldn’t today; yet Keir wears his `England shirt regardless.

Such confusion is both muti-faceted and deep-rooted in Englishness. World Cup Quiz question: which is the only team at this summer’s tournament to line up before kick-off without a National Anthem of their own for them and their fans to belt out? England! God Save the King is the National Anthem of the United Kingdom, not England and just try asking the Scotland team to dop Flower of Scotland to join in too!

This isn’t pedantry, it gets to the core of Englishness, a contradictory mix of nationalism and unionism. The most vivid example of this is the spate of hanging flags, Union Jacks and St George Crosses, from lamp posts in a movement to ‘Unite the Kingdom’. Much of this is wrapped up in a version of English patriotism which does little to distinguish itself from bad old-fashioned racism.

Contrast this to what Harold’s ‘we’ has become. The Wembley 1966 final was full of Union Jacks, the St George scarcely present. The tournament mascot  ‘World Cup Willy’ wore a Union Jack. Yes, the only time England has not only won, but hosted too a World Cup and the FA got our flag wrong! 

Few England fans this summer will make this mistake: the St George Cross is Universal, home and away. And in sheer numbers it will absolutely dwarf those of the lamp post hangers too.  And the purpose dwarves them too. A St George Cross celebrating a multicultural team managed by a German on its own doesn’t make for an anti-racist, Europeanised nation, but given the popular-political will is a very welcome first step in both directions.

In July 2024 Keir Starmer’s Labour Party won a landslide victory and just two years later Keir was there to celebrate when England for the second time lifted the World Cup at the New York New Jersey stadium. 

Well, that’s one Labour pledge all of England can get behind. 

Mark Perryman is the co-founder of the self-styled ‘ sporting outfitters of intellectual distinction’ aka Philosophy Football.

Special Offer The Philosophy Football Harold Wilson T-shirt is available to Labour Hub readers at 25% off and postage free. Quote coupon code LHWC26 at checkout. From here. 

Borders, Ballgames and Global Players

Daniel Warner

 June 5, 2026

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Victor Wembenyama at 2025 NBA Cup. Photograph Source: Daiei Onoguchi – CC BY 4.0

The upcoming June 14 vote on limiting Switzerland’s population to 10 million is a daily reminder here in Geneva that nativist populism remains a powerful political force. In France, Marine Le Pen continues to build support on anti-immigration politics. Nigel Farage pushes similar anxieties in Britain. The AfD does the same in Germany. Donald Trump’s version is familiar: build walls, tighten borders, send ICE into cities. Across much of the West, hostility toward foreigners has become ordinary politics.

Which is why the recent announcement of the National Basketball Association’s All-NBA First Team was so striking. At the very moment politics is warning against outsiders, American sports is celebrating them. Four of the five players selected to the NBA’s top team were born outside the United States. The city game has gone global. (The phrase city game for basketball was popularized in Pete Axthelm’s The City Game, his classic account of New York basketball in the late 1960s.)

Chosen by a panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters covering the league, the All-NBA First Team included: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder, from Canada; Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets, from Serbia; Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs, from France; Luka Dončić of the Los Angeles Lakers, from Slovenia. Only Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons was American. Four of the league’s five best players were born abroad, representing four countries and starring in four different American cities.

That is not symbolic. It reflects a broader reality. As of the 2025–26 season, 135 NBA players were born outside the United States, the highest number in league history. They come from 43 countries across six continents. Roughly one in four players in the NBA is now international.

Now, for those who are not basketball fans, allow me to briefly explain the importance of basketball in the United States. It is one of America’s defining sports: invented in Springfield, Massachusetts, and perfected on playground courts like Rucker Park in Harlem. As Vinson Cunningham observed, “Basketball is one of New York’s great public spectacles: you can’t walk far without passing a hoop.” It is American in origin and mythology, embedded in the streets of New York, Detroit, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Yet the league’s brightest stars increasingly arrive with accents, translators, and passports from elsewhere.

My beloved New York Knicks reflect the same global pattern: OG Anunoby was born in London, Pacôme Dadiet in France, Ariel Hukporti in Germany, and Karl-Anthony Towns represents the Dominican Republic in international competition.

Although New York’s Madison Square Garden (MSG) is considered the sport’s Mecca, the sport reaches far beyond cities. Even in Midwestern rural states like Indiana, basketball courts are woven into everyday life in countless driveways. “Mr. Indiana Basketball” is a major statewide honor—closer to a civic title than a routine sports award. (For anyone curious about Indiana basketball culture, Gene Hackman’s Hoosiers remains the reference point.)

Basketball is not a simple sports niche—it is a major entertainment industry. The NBA Finals regularly draw between 10 and 20 million U.S. viewers per game. The NBA generates billions in annual revenue; franchise valuations are among the highest in global sports, with a huge merchandising market (jerseys, sneakers, etc.).

Basketball is not alone in this globalization. The pattern of more and more foreign stars repeats in what has long been considered the American sport, baseball. On Major League Baseball’s opening day in 2026, 249 players—26.3 percent of the league—were born outside the United States. The Dominican Republic led with 93 players, Venezuela had 60, Cuba 20, Canada 19, and Japan 14. Others came from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Panama, Curaçao, Colombia, South Korea, Australia, Aruba, the Bahamas, Honduras, Nicaragua, Taiwan, and South Africa.

The reigning king of American baseball is a non-American. Shohei Ohtani, born in Japan, is now arguably the most extraordinary player the sport has ever seen. Both an elite pitcher and an elite hitter, Ohtani rightly challenges Babe Ruth as the sport’s greatest player. He is already a four-time Most Valuable Player winner. More and more postgame interviews now happen through translators because many of the game’s biggest stars, like Ohtani, are not native English speakers.

Politicians increasingly tell voters to fear foreigners. In Switzerland, we are told non-Swiss workers cause traffic jams and drive up housing costs. But Switzerland’s own national soccer team offers a similar picture of globalization. Several of its most prominent players have dual citizenship or family roots abroad. Yet the same anti-immigration voters will root for the entire team during the upcoming World Cup.

Like Swiss soccer fans, Americans cheer foreign-born athletes not despite where they come from but because of what they bring: talent, discipline, style, and victory. Tens of thousands of fans in Oklahoma City rise for a Canadian. Denver adores a Serbian. San Antonio chants for a Frenchman. Los Angeles embraces a Slovenian. Baseball stadiums roar for a Japanese superstar.

Sports does not erase xenophobia. It does not resolve the asylum debate or settle border politics despite the Olympic ideal. There is an important paradox. The rhetoric of exclusion collides every day with a simpler reality: people admire excellence wherever it comes from when it helps their team win. The crowds see winners before they see nationality, even as many of them vote for politicians running on xenophobia. U.S. sports crowds—many of whom voted for Trump and admire his hard line on immigration—seem perfectly happy cheering non-Americans.

The NBA’s first team may say something larger about the country. Politicians may still campaign on borders and walls. Donald Trump and Stephen Miller may continue to denigrate foreigners, but America’s sports fans keep rooting for the world.

To understand the importance of the Knicks to New York, see The New Yorker editor David Remnick’s recent description of the first time the Knicks won the NBA crown: “May 8, 1970, was the night of all sporting New York nights,” he wrote. “Bliss it was in that dawn to be alive! So proclaimed the voices of the Knicks: John F. X. Condon at the Garden, Marv Albert on the air.”

How I remember that night! “Bliss it was to be alive.” After decades of waiting to see the Knicks back in the Finals and more than half a century since we last won the title, I just want my team to win this year, no matter who hits the winning baskets, American or otherwise. Go Knicks!

Daniel Warner is the author of An Ethic of Responsibility in International Relations. (Lynne Rienner). He lives in Geneva.

Mass protest in Serbia ends in violent clashes with police

Crowds packed Slavija Square, one of the capital’s main junctions, in one of the largest rallies in months, part of a wave of anti-government protests that began after a deadly infrastructure collapse in 2024. / Lazar Novaković, Glas ŠumadijeFacebook

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By Tatyana Kekic in Belgrade May 24, 2026

Police fired teargas and clashed with protesters in the Serbian capital late on May 23 after tens of thousands gathered peacefully to demand early elections and an end to the more than decade-long rule of President Aleksandar Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).

Crowds packed Slavija Square, one of the capital’s main junctions, marking one of the largest rallies in recent months, part of a wave of anti-government protests that began after a deadly infrastructure collapse in 2024. 

Authorities put turnout at just 34,300 people, while photos and drone footage suggested a crowd comparable to a March 15, 2025 protest that drew nearly 300,000. The independent Archive of Public Gatherings initially estimated more than 100,000, saying the final figure would likely be higher.

The rally, which began around 1800 local time and ended shortly before 2000, followed marches from multiple points across the city. Protesters travelled from across Serbia, with columns of cars and motorcyles entering Belgrade during the day.

Clashes broke out later in the evening near Pionirski Park, where SNS supporters have routinely gathered, and along central streets including Kneza Miloša and Resavska. Riot police formed cordons and moved in to disperse groups of protesters. Witnesses reported an enormous police presence, including plainclothes officers, and multiple arrests.

Police in riot gear cordoned off key institutions, including city hall and areas near the presidency building, as clashes broke out between pro- and anti-government protesters and police. Officers used teargas, stun grenades and pepper spray to push back groups of people throwing flares, rocks and bottles. 

Opposition media and student organisers said the violence was initiated by hooligans and provocateurs, while authorities blamed protesters for attacking police.

Vucic called for dialogue, while the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office said those who attacked police officers would be identified and prosecuted.

The demonstrations are part of a broader anti-corruption movement led by university students that has driven months of protests, strikes and road blockades since late 2024, after the collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad killed 16 people.

Student organisers say the tragedy exposed systemic corruption and mismanagement in state infrastructure projects, allegations the government denies, saying those responsible have been held to account. The unrest forced the resignation of former prime minister Milos Vucevic in January 2025.

Vucic, whose Serbian Progressive Party has dominated Serbian politics for over a decade, said earlier this week that early parliamentary elections would be held between late September and mid-November, ahead of schedule. Elections are otherwise due in 2027.

‘Ready for violence’: Serbian STATE hooligans target protesters


ByAFP
May 21, 2026


Supporters of the ruling Serbian Progressive party (SNS) stand in front of their party headquarters - Copyright AFP Jung Yeon-je
Ognjen ZORIC, Andrew LEESON

When Voja was beaten and dragged from a Belgrade street into a waiting car, the young activist thought he would die.

After an hours-long ordeal, his assailants freed him, bruised and bloodied.

“I feared for my life. I had no idea what they were planning to do with me,” Voja, who asked to be identified only by his first name, told AFP.

Weeks later, he is still visibly shaken when recounting the April 29 incident, just one report in a mounting pattern of violence against people connected to Serbia’s long-running protest movement.

But unlike many other attacks, Voja said his captors made no attempt to hide their faces — and had allegedly emerged from a van emblazoned with the campaign slogan of the ruling party of President Aleksandar Vucic.



– ‘Ready for violence’ –



For more than a year, student-led protests have swept across Serbia, with some rallies drawing crowds unseen since demonstrations toppled strongman Slobodan Milosevic in 2000.

Demands for a transparent investigation into a railway station canopy collapse in November 2024, which killed 16 people, have snowballed into a push for early elections, in a direct challenge to Vucic.

As the largely peaceful demonstrations grew, groups of young men — largely dressed in black and wearing masks — increasingly targeted anti-government gatherings.

During a series of demonstrations last year, protesters claimed the police shielded groups of masked men, some armed with batons and fireworks, and violently suppressed the anti-government side.

Council of Europe observers also witnessed the “threatening” presence of large groups of men, several masked, outside polling stations during local elections that were marred by violence earlier this year.

The ties between these groups, locally referred to as hooligans, and Vucic’s Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) run deep, according to Predrag Petrovic, research director at the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy.

“The essence of it is that you have an organised group of people ready for violence, for street violence, and you want them on your side,” he said.



– ‘A blind eye’ –



According to Petrovic, the existence of a pro-government camp — reportedly containing known criminals — near the country’s parliament shows a clear connection to the government.

“Hooligan leaders wanted to be seen there in order to send a message to others about which side was the right one,” the expert said, referring to the camp, which has remained ringed by fences and guarded by police for months.

There have been several reports of assaults on protesters and journalists near the camp, while Serbian media have identified known criminals staying inside.

“But the police turned a blind eye,” Petrovic said.

Last summer, the president pardoned four men, linked to the SNS, accused of beating students and breaking a woman’s jaw in Novi Sad.

Vucic has also visited what he dubbed the “defenders of Serbia” in the pro-government camp several times and bragged about being “partly a football hooligan” in a recent podcast — claiming he was arrested “many times”.

“Those remarks should be taken very seriously, and they are certainly utterly inappropriate,” Petrovic said.



– ‘Nightmares’ –



With Vucic flagging potential early election dates, political outreach has ramped up on both sides, and it was during campaigning that Voja and his two friends were attacked.

After handing out stickers on the street in the Belgrade suburb of Resnik, a van painted with the campaign slogan of Vucic’s party blocked their path, he said. A group of about five or six people jumped out to confront them.

As the men began threatening and grabbing the trio, one of Voja’s friends used pepper spray.

According to Voja, the men chased him into a supermarket before dragging him out, beating him and forcing him into the car — while repeatedly claiming to be police officers.

He said they drove him to an empty field and interrogated him before his friends published the alleged attackers’ names on social media, at which point the men dropped him on a nearby street.

Neither the Interior Ministry nor the SNS responded to AFP’s request for comment.

The incident has been reported to police and prosecutors, but Voja said he doubted there would be any real action.

With a badly bruised and swollen face, he remains fearful every time he goes outside.

“I have sleeping problems, mostly nightmares.”

Vatican synod report criticizes conversion therapy, features gay Catholic testimony

(RNS) — Advocates for LGBTQ+ Catholics expressed surprise to see the Vatican publishing the testimonies of married gay men.

Some of the hundreds of LGBTQ+ Catholics and their families who joined a Holy Year pilgrimage to Rome, celebrating a new level of acceptance in the Catholic Church and crediting Pope Francis for the change, walk through the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, Sept. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Aleja Hertzler-McCain
May 5, 2026
RNS



(RNS) — The Vatican released a report from a study group of theologians on Tuesday (May 5) that included the testimony of two married gay Catholics and acknowledged the church’s role in “the solitude, anguish, and stigma that accompany persons with same-sex attractions and their families.” The report also reflects on the negative impacts of conversion therapy, or “the devastating effects of reparative therapies aimed at recovering heterosexuality.”

“ It’s a big deal because they included testimonies and published testimonies from two LGBTQ people, both of them married, which is also unusual for the Vatican to do,” said the Rev. James Martin, a founder of Outreach, an LGBTQ Catholic ministry. “As far as I know, it’s the first time that in any official publication of the Vatican, they’ve included witnesses and testimonies and stories from LGBTQ Catholics in any kind of detailed way.”

The report comes from a group of theologians, including bishops, priests, a sister and a layperson, convened by the Vatican to study “controversial” issues raised by the Synod on Synodality, Pope Francis’ signature listening initiative, to which Martin was a delegate. Though church reform advocates hoped — and traditionalists feared — that the synod would bring major changes to church teaching around gender and sexuality, the decision to relegate contentious issues, such as LGBTQ+ inclusion, to study groups instead of general discussion was widely seen as a damper.

As expected, the synod study group report, which was written to advise the pope, does not announce major changes to church doctrine, but it does suggest that the Catholic Church address the impasse between “doctrinal firmness” and “pastoral welcome” by listening and using a transdisciplinary approach, such as incorporating insights from psychology, alongside the Bible and church doctrine.

This synod document was written by the study group, not the pope, but its release to the public would have required his authorization.

“ It’s a really good — I would even say historic — document,” said Yunuen Trujillo, a lesbian lay minister from Los Angeles. “ It’s still calling for all Catholics to engage in a process of discernment that is respectful of people’s lived experiences.”

Trujillo, author of “LGBTQ Catholics: A Guide to Inclusive Ministry,” said it might take a while for LGBTQ+ Catholics in the pews to feel the impact and noted that the document only focuses on lesbians, gays and bisexual people. “But I do believe it would be a positive impact, not a negative one,” she said.

In this Oct. 4, 2023, file photo, Pope Francis, far right, participates in the opening session of the 16th General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Marianne Duddy-Burke, a married lesbian Catholic and DignityUSA’s executive director, said, “ The most significant thing for me was the recognition that top-down trying to dictate behavior and morality on the basis of dogma isn’t working,” adding she was “hopeful” to see the report using the language of a “paradigm shift.”

The “paradigm shift” the report proposes is a move away from applying abstract theological principles to on-the-ground realities and instead seeing theory and practice as a “virtuous cycle.” For the two to effectively inform each other, the report argues, requires a focus on relationships, transparency and learning. The document offers this theological framework not just for LGBTQ+ issues but for broader use, including in nonviolent activism and protest.

The report’s release garnered some blowback, a portion of which fell on Pope Leo XIV. Far-right Catholic news organization LifeSite published a story on the report, raising concerns that the report was questioning “the sinful nature of homosexuality” and leaving unresolved the “debate on same-sex ‘marriage.'” Co-founder John-Henry Westen released a video warning that the report’s pro-LGBTQ+ stance makes clear the meaning of “synodality” under Leo.

But there are also signs Leo is not eager to change church teaching, including remarks he made in interviews last year. On Wednesday, the Vatican published a 2024 letter by the Vatican doctrinal office condemning German Catholic bishops’ plans to create formalized blessings for same-sex couples.

Advocates for LGBTQ+ Catholics expressed surprise to see the Vatican publishing the testimonies of married gay men.

“ I was expecting a rather bland report. And this was not that,” said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry, which serves LGBTQ Catholics. “ In days gone by in the church, they would try to tick off the token box by getting someone who had certain traits and characteristics, but who was just not critical of the church in any way.”

Martin said this is the first time he remembers seeing conversion therapy “critiqued that strongly” in a Vatican document. “There have been certain bishops who have been very muted in their critique of conversion therapy, but then there have also been bishops who have used organizations whose techniques really verge on conversion therapy,” he said.

One gay Catholic wrote of “wounds from the Christian community” in his Vatican-released testimony. “I cannot ignore the scars I carry. I have witnessed the devastating effects of ‘conversion therapies’ and the break-up of families, which felt like an attack on God’s sensitive and blameless creation. These experiences deeply hurt, because they target the inherent dignity of a person who simply bears the love of another of the same gender.”

But the married Portuguese man also wrote of his deep faith in the Eucharist and his sharing “a life of faith, service, and love” with his husband. “I live my life in profound peace with God, who knows me from my mother’s womb.”

“I feel the Church needs to move beyond mere ‘welcoming’ and ‘pity,'” he wrote in the testimony. “We need to proclaim the unspoken truth: God loves you and desires your wholeness. Sexuality is one part of our life, and difference is a hallmark of Creation.”

DeBernardo said the testimonies of LGBTQ+ people and their advocates have also been moving for the 17 bishops who have participated in three different meetings with New Ways Ministry in recent years. “We had a bishop at the end of the meeting in tears because he was so regretful of the way he had thought about LGBTQ people,” DeBernardo said.

“Dialogue really is the first step,” said DeBernardo. “ The genius of Pope Francis is that he realized that people had to start talking with one another, and learning about each other and not having the fear and the stereotypes.”

For Duddy-Burke, who represents a grassroots group led by LGBTQ+ Catholics that was banned 40 years ago from meeting in Catholic spaces — and who said she has struggled for years as a result to even have these conversations — the document inspires hope: “We didn’t have a place at the table and, and this document says that it’s time that we did,” she said.

At the same time, Duddy-Burke worries about whether those who hold the power will continue to dialogue and be willing to have their “minds and hearts changed.”

“And how will that be managed in parts of the world where it’s absolutely unsafe and it’s sometimes illegal, you know, for people to come forward as queer?” she asked.

The synod report also addresses “active nonviolence,” highlighting the examples of Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Filipino “People Power” and Polish “Solidarity” anti-government movements, as well as the experience of a Catholic Serbian conscientious objector. Peace has been a major focus of Leo’s pontificate, and his recent anti-war statements have led to conflict with the Trump administration, which has used theological language to promote its war in the Middle East.

In the Vatican report, the theologians suggest that “just war theory,” which Catholic U.S. Vice President JD Vance has referenced to defend the war, is “inadequate” in the modern context. “Since war can no longer be confined to military targets but overflows into civilian life, taking on new forms (hybrid, asymmetrical, etc.), the recourse to frameworks used in the past for legitimate defence — and even more so for ‘just war’ — appears increasingly inadequate,” they write.

On Tuesday, the Vatican also released the report of another Synod study group dedicated to bishop selection and other bishop issues. That report proposed broad consultation — including the perspectives of lay people, in addition to clergy and religious — when it comes to potential bishop candidates as well as ideal future bishop qualities.

This story has been updated to add more information about the purpose of the report and details about Leo’s response to the German Catholic bishops’ plans to formalize same-sex blessings.

Bulgaria wins 2026 Eurovision, Israel lands a nail-biting second


Bulgarian singer Dara won the 70th Eurovision Song Contest Sunday for her catchy, party anthem "Bangaranga", handing her country its first ever title. Israel's Noam Bettan looked set to win for his song "Michelle" following a big televoting score, but in the end, Bulgaria's televote put Dara at the top of a contest clouded by protests and boycotts over Israel’s participation.


Issued on: 17/05/2026
By: FRANCE 24
Video by: FRANCE 24

Bulgaria's Dara holds up the 2026 Eurovision trophy in Vienna, Austria, May 17, 2026. 

© Martin Meissner, AP
02:03




Bulgaria won the Eurovision Song Contest on Sunday with Dara's catchy floor-filler "Bangaranga" sweeping the 70th edition of the world's biggest live televised music event and pushing into second place Israel, whose participation had triggered a major boycott.

Bulgaria has missed the last three editions of the glitzy extravaganza but took the crown in Vienna for the first time ever, overtaking Israel at the very end as the points came in, with Romania finishing third.

Pop singer Darina Yotova, known as Dara, was not among the favourites going into Eurovision week but the 27-year-old gained traction following a strong performance in the semi-finals, with her highly-choreographed dance routines.

"Everything is possible: Bulgaria just won Eurovision!" Dara told a press conference.


"I really like breaking rules. I'm really good with following my rules -- not anybody else's.

"We wanted to give to the audience something new and fresh, something that is not expected."

Her latest album is inspired by her 'hyperactivity'. © Tobias Schwarz, AFP


Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov on Facebook hailed a "magnificent story of immense talent, tireless effort, and faith in success, against all criticism."
Tension over Israel's participation

Around 10,000 glammed-up fans filled the Wiener Stadthalle arena in the Austrian capital to watch Saturday's showpiece final of Eurovision, where, as always, the razzmatazz didn't escape the geopolitics in the background.

Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia staged the biggest political boycott in Eurovision history over Israel's participation, citing the war in Gaza.

And it looked as though Noam Bettan was going to win the contest for Israel with his song "Michelle" following a big score in the televoting from the public around Europe.

But as Bulgaria's televote points were revealed, Dara ultimately won the contest.

Bulgaria finished with 516 points, ahead of Israel on 343, Romania on 296, Australia on 287, Italy with 281 and Finland on 279.

This is the second year in a row that Israel has come second, largely because of a huge vote from the public. Eurovision organizers tightened voting rules this year after allegations the country had mounted an intense lobbying campaign to get votes for its competitor.

Bettan was loudly cheered, though there was a smattering of boos as he performed “Michelle,” a rock ballad in Hebrew, French and English. Earlier in the week, four people were ejected for trying to disrupt his semifinal performance.

Hundreds of protesters against Israel's inclusion marched near the contest arena before Saturday's final, some holding placards saying “Block Eurovision.” Pro-Palestinian groups also staged an outdoor concert on Friday under the banner “No stage for genocide.”

“Inviting Israel on such a beautiful stage as the Eurovision Song Contest stage is an affront to all the people who believe in humanity, who believe in love and togetherness,” said Congolese-Austrian artist Patrick Bongola, one of the organizers.

Darina Yotova first became known in Bulgaria in 2015. © Tobias Schwarz, AFP


Johannes Pietsch, known as JJ, who won Eurovision 2025 for Austria with his song "Wasted Love", handed over the winner's trophy to Dara.

JJ had opened Saturday's musical extravaganza with a nod to Austria's grand musical history, singing the "Queen of the Night" aria from composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's 1791 opera "The Magic Flute".

"Bangaranga, it's a feeling that everybody has got in themselves," Dara said earlier Sunday as the votes were coming in.

"It's the moment that you choose to lead through love and not fear, and this is a special energy that I know everybody has got in themselves."

Her debut single released in 2016 catapulted her to the top of the music charts in Bulgaria. © Tobias Schwarz, AFP


Fans streaming out of the arena revelled in Dara's triumph.

"I didn't like the song at first,... but I saw it, I saw the performance, and I was stunned," said Katerina, a Eurovision fan from Greece.
Finnish fiddling, Romanian choking

The bookmakers' overwhelming favourites going into the final were the Finnish double-act of violinist Linda Lampenius and pop singer Pete Parkkonen, with their song "Liekinheitin", or "Flamethrower".

As the song built to a climax, 56-year-old Lampenius was shredding her bow as she worked her way to the very top of the fingerboard.

Romanian singer Alexandra Capitanescu's switched up the vibe with the 22-year-old's heavy metal song "Choke Me" triggering controversy in the build-up over its repeated lyric: "I want you to choke me".

Australia's Delta Goodrem, who has sold nine million albums, came fourth after wowing the crowds with her song "Eclipse", which was filled with strong moments, ending with her soaring high on a riser coming up out of a glittering piano.

Serbian metallers Lavina had the deepest throat-shredding growl of the night, the Czech Republic's Daniel Zizka navigated a hall of mirrors, while Lithuania's silver-painted Lion Ceccah brought an air of brooding mystery.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and AP)

Eurovision winner Dara had 'doubt and anxiety' about taking part

17.05.2026, DPA

Photo: Helmut Fohringer/APA/dpa

Bulgaria’s first ever Eurovision winner Dara has said she had "doubt and anxiety" about taking part in the 2026 edition of the song contest.

The 27-year-old won the competition at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, with her song "Bangaranga," which scored 516 points, beating Israel’s Noam Bettan in second with 343 points and Romania’s Alexandra Capitanescu in third with 296 points.

The singer, whose real name is Darina Yotova, said at a press conference after her win: "I want to thank my husband, because he was the one to push me to come to Eurovision.

"Because in the beginning I was not sure if I want to come or not, because I had anxiety and doubt with myself, and he was the one that he just pushed me, and he was like, 'you need to go right now to Eurovision, right now, pick up your phone tell them you’re going'."

Dara, who previously appeared on the Bulgarian edition of The X Factor in 2015 and reached the final, won both the jury and public vote.

She added: "I’m so thankful that I (got) the chance to be in Eurovision, and every day I’ve been here in this place, I felt safe, protected, loved, supported.

"I felt that I can do everything, that everything is possible, and I really, truly think that this community is so amazing.

"I will miss you so much, today I woke up, and I almost cried, because I will miss this place, and you all."

Dara’s win means next year’s contest will take place in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia.

Her high-energy performance saw her perform in a pink top and leather shorts, as dancers around her performed a jerky routine in shirts and ties.

(c) 2026 dpa Deutsche Presse Agentur GmbH

Eurovision Asia boss unsure if region ready for ‘campy, gay’ acts

14.05.2026, DPA

Photo: Helmut Fohringer/APA/dpa

The boss of Eurovision Asia has said he is unsure if the continent is ready for “campy, gay” performances.

It was announced earlier this year that the Eurovision Song Contest would launch its first ever Asia edition, with broadcasters from 10 countries in the region, including Vietnam, South Korea and Thailand, taking part.

The comments came ahead of the second semi-final for the Eurovision Song Contest held in Vienna.

Speaking at a press conference in Vienna’s Wiener Stadthalle, Eurovision Asia executive producer Assaf Blecher said: “I don’t think the Asian market is fully ready for full campy, gay, over the top performances.

“I don’t think that’s what we’re going to get from the countries, but maybe, who knows also, Thailand and Philippines are not the same as Bhutan and Cambodia and Nepal, that’s completely different territory.

“I think from the flavours that we’re going to get, the learning that also we are getting from the territories we’re going to create, I think, something special.”

The Eurovision Asia 2026 grand final is expected to take place in Bangkok on November 14.

The Asia edition of the song contest is co-organized by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and entertainment company Voxovation.

Peter Settman, Voxovation chief executive, said: “This is truly a non-political event, as we all know, but there are conflicts within the region that we need to overcome and be on the same stage.”

The United Kingdom along with the other big four - Germany, Italy and France - have already qualified as they contribute the most to Eurovision financially.

The Eurovision Song Contest final will take place on Saturday at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna.

(c) 2026 dpa Deutsche Presse Agentur GmbH