those comments were delivered to a new house select committee on china. we have a lot to get to this morning from the panel s prime time hearing. meanwhile, a trip to china by a putin ally is increasing concerns that beijing will ramp up support for russian forces. back here at home, president joe biden s student loan forgiveness plan went before the supreme court yesterday with the conservative majority expressing some skepticism about wiping away debt for some borrowers. also ahead, reaction to an historic defeat in chicago. for the first time in four decades, the city s mayor has lost a reelection bid. we ll get to that. good morning, and welcome to morning joe. it is wednesday, march 1st. joe has the morning off, but along with willie and me, we have, of course, the host of way too early, white house bureau chief at politico, jonathan lemire, u.s. special correspondent for bbc news, katty kay, and the president of the council on foreign relations, richard haass is
good morning. the vatican has announced the death of pope benedict xvi at the age of 95. his health had been worsening in recent weeks. benedict served as head of the roman catholic church for eight years until 2013, when he became the first pope in 600 years to announce his retirement. he was german by birth, and was known for his conservative theological outlook. vatican spokesman, matteo bruni, said in a statement. bells tolling this was the moment of the confirmation of his death in rome, you can hear the bells ringing in st peter s square in vatican city. the vatican says pope benedict s body will lie in state from monday in st peter s basilica. let s go straight to our europe correspondent, bethany bell. we can see some crowd behind you, how have people reacted to the news of the death of the former pope? we of the death of the former pope? - spoke to one couple from spain who were here in the square as tourists and they said that their tour guide told them the news and
the former pope, benedict xvi, has died at the age of 95. the vatican says he passed away this morning at his residence there. his health had been worsening in recent weeks. benedict served as head of the roman catholic church for eight years until 2013, when he became the first pope in 600 years to announce his retirement. he was german by birth, and was known for his conservative theological outlook. bells tolling this was the moment his death was confirmed in rome. you can hear the bells ringing in st peter s square in vatican city. the vatican says pope benedict s body will lie in state from monday in st peter s basilica, and that pope francis will lead the funeral on january 5th. here s our religon editor, aleem maqbool. cerebral by character, benedict was a prolific author and more at home with scholarship than pastoral work. he led the world s catholics for eight years and then abruptly resigned, the first pope to do so in 600 years. joseph ratzinger was born in southe
his funeral will be held on the 5th ofjanuary and will be presided over by pope francis. world health officials call on beijing to share accurate covid data, as england becomes the latest country to control arrivals from china. queen guitarist brian may and members of england s women s football team are among those celebrated in the uk s new year s honours list. the former pope, benedict xvi, has died at the age of 95. the vatican says he passed away this morning at his residence there. his health had been worsening in recent weeks. benedict served as head of the roman catholic church for eight years until 2013, when he became the first pope in 600 years to announce his retirement. he was german by birth, and was known for his conservative theological outlook. bells tolling this was the moment his death was confirmed in rome. you can hear the bells ringing, in st peter s square in vatican city. the vatican says pope benedict s body will lie in state from monday in st peter s