TRANSCRIPT
- Hundreds of thousands of mourners join world leaders for Pope Francis' funeral
- Labor pledges a free Medicare telehealth service
- Tyler Wright will take on Isabella Nichols in an all-Australian women's semi-final at the Rip Curl Pro
Leaders from around the world have joined crowds of the faithful to pay their last respects during the funeral of Pope Francis.
According to the Vatican, some 250,000 mourners filled the Vatican to watch the ceremony.
A further 150,000 lined the motorcade route through downtown Rome to witness the first funeral procession for a pope in a century.
These two people were among them.
Voxie 1:"We’re very sad for Papa Francesco, and I think he did his best, but I would have liked to see more women in the church. Maybe they will come next time."
Voxie 2: "We're not personally religious. However, we came here to obviously see the Pope go past. It is quite upsetting, obviously, because he’s someone you see on the news, you see him on media all the time. So, yes, it's quite an emotional thing and it's amazing to see everyone come out, everyone clapping as he goes past."
Lasting just 90 minutes, Pope Francis' funeral was significantly shorter than Pope St John Paul II's in 2005, which lasted three hours.
Breaking with tradition even further, Pope Francis has elected to be the first pope buried outside of the Vatican in over a century.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has paid his respects, as millions of people around the world tuned in to watch the funeral of Pope Francis.
Issuing a statement, Mr Albanese says Pope Francis will be remembered as someone whose compassion embraced all humanity.
Australia's highest-ranking Catholic official, Melbourne-based cardinal Mykola Bychok, says Pope Francis led the church with love.
"He was a pope of mercy, not just in word but in action. He reached out to the poor, the excluded, the wounded. He taught us not to judge but to accompany. He reminded us again and again, that no one is beyond the reach of God's love."
The Catholic Church now begins nine days of official mourning for Francis.
After the mourning, cardinals aged under 80 will elect a new pope.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has met US President Donald Trump in their first face-to-face meeting since their Oval Office clash in February.
Both leaders met ahead of Pope Francis' funeral.
In a post on social media, following the meeting, Mr Trump says he now holds doubts that a peace deal can be finalised soon, saying things are complicated by Russia's actions over the last few days in shooting missiles into civilian areas.
The comments contrast with his earlier remarks to reporters about the outcome of a meeting between special envoy Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin.
Reporter: "What do you hope Steve Witkoff will get out of his meeting with Putin today?"
Donald Trump: "He'll be calling me. They just left the meeting. I haven't been briefed yet. But he had, I heard he had a pretty good meeting."
**
A re-elected Labor government would launch a free after-hours access to government-funded telehealth services.
With only a week to go before election day on the 3rd of May, the Prime Minister is set to formally announce today, that the plan for a 24-hour '1800MEDICARE’ service would involve committing $204.5 million over four years, to revamp the existing Healthdirect service, which is operated in conjunction with the states and territories.
Labor says - as part of the pledge - the plan would be in place by the 1st of January 2026, and would ensure patients requiring urgent care between 6pm and 8am on weeknights or during weekends - had access to a bulk-billed consultation, with an after-hours GP via phone or video.
Meanwhile, Opposition leader Peter Dutton will begin the final week of the election campaign in Melbourne.
The Coalition has signalled its aim to visit 28 seats before polls close on election day.
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Iran's Interior Minister, Eskandar Momeni, says an explosion at the country's largest commercial port has killed at least eight people and injured more than 750 others.
Hossein Zafari, spokesman for Iran’s crisis management organisation, blamed poor storage of chemicals at Shahid Rajaee port, saying prior warnings had been issued about potential dangers.
A government spokesperson confirmed chemicals likely triggered the blast, but says the exact cause is still under investigation.
Video footage broadcast by state media showed thick black and orange smoke billowing from the port, and severe damage to nearby offices.
Shahid Rajaee is Iran’s largest container hub, handling the majority of the country's container traffic.
**
To surfing now, two-time world champion Tyler Wright will take on Isabella Nichols in an all-Australian women's semi-final in the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach.
Wright edged past Bettylou Sakura Johnson in the last of four women's quarter-finals on Saturday.
The Hawaiian young gun had the highest-scoring single wave of the heat, 7.73-points, but 31-year-old Wright advanced with a winning heat total.
Sakura Johnson won a paddle battle midway through the contest, but it was the Australian who eventually emerged triumphant, grabbing the decisive wave when the Hawaiian had priority.
