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Madalaine Elhabbal

Madalaine Elhabbal

Madalaine Elhabbal is a staff reporter for Catholic News Agency based at EWTN’s Washington, D.C., bureau. She has been published by CatholicVote and has also worked as foreign language assistant in France. She is a graduate of Benedictine College.

A photo display of persecuted Christians in Iraq and Nigeria can be seen at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., until Feb. 8, 2026. / Credit: Madalaine Elhabbal/CNA

Nigerian, Iraqi Priests Tell of Aiding Persecuted Christians Seen in Photo Exhibit

A photo exhibit features the “forgotten faces” of persecuted Christians in Nigeria and Iraq.

Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of the Nigerian Diocese of Makurdi in Benue state at a breakfast at Capitol Hill organized by Aid to the Church in Need, Jan. 30, 2024. / Credit: Peter Pinedo/CNA

Nigerian Catholic Bishop Calls for U.S. Military Intervention at Congressional Hearing

A Nigerian Catholic bishop said U.S. military intervention is warranted at a Nov. 20 hearing of the U.S. House Foreign...

President Donald Trump holds a press briefing with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in August 2025. / Credit: Joey Sussman/ Shutterstock

U.S. President Threatens Military Action if Nigeria Fails to End Religious Persecution of Christians

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened military action against Nigeria if it fails to end Christian persecution.

An African nun prays the rosary. On Jan. 7, 2025, two religious sisters were kidnapped in the Archdiocese of Onitsha in Nigeria. / Credit: Diego Cervo/Shutterstock.

Donald Trump, U.S. President, Says He'll Designate Nigeria "country of particular concern"

President Donald Trump said he is designating Nigeria a "country of particular concern."

Over 200 Christians were murdered by Islamist militants in Nigeria on June, 13, 2025. / Credit: Red Confidential/Shutterstock

Members of U.S. Congress, USCIRF Push to Designate Nigeria as Country of Particular Concern

Members of Congress and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) are pushing to designate Nigeria as a country...

The Catholic University of America. / Credit: Mehdi Kasumov/Shutterstock

Catholic University Press to Publish Pope Leo XIV’s Doctoral Dissertation

Here’s a roundup of some of the latest Catholic education news.

Pope Leo XIV meets with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on July 24, 2025, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Leo XIV Meets Algerian President, Discusses Church Life and Peacebuilding

Here is a roundup of Catholic world news from the past week that you might have missed.

Father Gabriel Romanelli, parish priest at the Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Family who was wounded in a recent strike on the church, stands before the altar during a Sunday morning Mass held by the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem at the church in Gaza City on July 20, 2025. / Credit: OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images

Exclusive: Gaza Priest Injured in Israeli Bombing Discusses Impact on Parish Community

In an exclusive interview with “EWTN Noticias,” Father Gabriel Romanelli spoke about the July 17 bombing of Holy Family Parish...

Joseph Hazboun, the regional director at the Pontifical Mission in the Jerusalem field office, speaks to Tara Mergener on "EWTN News Nightly," Friday, July 18, 2025 / Credit: EWTN News

Director of Jerusalem Pontifical Mission Assesses Situation in Gaza after Catholic Church Attack

Joseph Hazboun, director of the Pontifical Mission in Jerusalem, spoke with “EWTN News Nightly” on July 18 about the situation...

Political advocacy and media organization CatholicVote announced on June 19, 2025, that Kelsey Reinhardt will be its new president. | Credit: CatholicVote

CatholicVote Names Kelsey Reinhardt New President

CatholicVote has named Kelsey Reinhardt to serve as its new president effective June 19, following the appointment of the organization’s...

Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo,  the archbishop of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, asked President Donald Trump for aid to Africa an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal on Sunday, June 8, 2025. / Credit: François-Régis Salefran CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED

"Africa is important to the U.S": Cardinal Ambongo Appeals to President Trump to Reinstate Foreign Aid

Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, the archbishop of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, asked President Donald Trump this weekend to...

Pew’s latest research released June 5, 2025, found that while Christianity still remains the world’s largest religion, Islam’s growth outpaced every religion over the course of a decade. / Credit: Arthimedes/Shutterstock

How the Global Religious Landscape Changed from 2010 to 2020: Pew Report

The latest Pew report found that Islam outpaced every world religion in population from 2010 to 2020, though Christianity remained...

Pope Leo XIV meets with delegates to the annual meeting of moderators of associations of the faithful, ecclesial movements, and new communities on June 6, 2025, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican Media

"Christian life is not lived in isolation": Pope Leo XIV to Leaders of Ecclesial Movements

Christians must not attempt to live out the promises of Christ alone, Leo told a delegation in Rome for the...

Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, June 1, 2025 for the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents and the Elderly. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

In Phone Call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pope Leo XIV Appeals for Russia to "favour peace, dialogue"

“The pope made an appeal for Russia to take a gesture that would favor peace, emphasizing the importance of dialogue,”...

Doug Burton of Truth Nigeria speaks to “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Erik Rosales on May 27, 2025, about the brutal massacre in Nigeria that occurred May 25. / Credit: “EWTN News Nightly” screenshot

Massacre in Nigeria Follows Catholic Bishop’s U.S. Testimony on Christian Persecution

A brutal attack by extremist Muslim herdsmen in Nigeria on Sunday left dozens dead and resulted in the kidnapping of...

Pope Leo XIV smiles as a jubilant crowd joins in prayer on Sunday, May 11, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Being American, Pope Leo XIV's Pontificate Could Mean Increased Charitable Giving: Papal Foundation President

President of the Papal Foundation, which carries out the Holy Father’s humanitarian aid projects, thinks Leo XIV’s papacy might increase...

Michael Warsaw, CEO of EWTN. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

EWTN’s Michael Warsaw Celebrates "momentous" Election of First American Pope

“It is with great joy that I welcome the election of Chicago-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as Pope Leo XIV,”...

A member of the Papal Foundation greets Pope Francis with a personalized New Orleans Saints jersey, Friday, April 12, 2024. | Credit: Vatican Media

Papal Foundation’s Annual Grant Distribution to Honor the Legacy of Pope Francis

Following the death of Pope Francis last month, the Papal Foundation’s annual distribution of humanitarian aid will be in memory...

Pope Francis prays at the “Garden of Angels” section of the Laurentino Cemetery in Rome on All Souls’ Day, Nov. 2, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

"Death is not the end of everything": Vatican Releases Pope Francis' Reflections on Aging, Dying

“We must not be afraid of old age, we must not fear embracing becoming old,” wrote Francis in the preface...

In a prerecorded audio message, Pope Francis thanked those gathered for the rosary prayer service in St. Peter’s Square on Thursday night, March 6, 2025.

In Prerecorded Message, Pope Francis Voices Thanks to Participants in Prayer in St. Peter’s Square Thursday Night

The Holy Father’s voice was hoarse, and he was noticeably out of breath in the brief audio message, which the...