Pope Francis has undergone abdominal surgery “without complications”, the Vatican says.

The hernia operation at Rome’s Gemelli hospital lasted three hours. The 86-year-old is expected to stay in hospital for several days to recover.

In a statement, the Vatican said the pontiff’s medical team had decided in recent days that surgery was needed. Earlier on Wednesday, Pope Francis carried out his weekly audience as normal and did not mention his planned operation.

All of his commitments for the next 10 days have been cancelled as a “precautionary measure”.

(BBC)

BBC reported that thousands of people are being evacuated downstream of a major dam which has been blown up in Russian-held Ukraine.

President Zelensky said 80 towns and villages were at risk of flooding after the destruction of the dam at Nova Kakhovka, which he blamed on Russia. Water is surging down the Dnipro river and is said to pose a catastrophic flooding risk to the city of Kherson.

Russia has denied destroying the dam – which it controls – instead blaming Ukrainian shelling. Neither Ukraine or Russia’s claim has been verified by the BBC.

The Kakhovka dam is crucial in the region. It contains a reservoir, which provides water to farmers and residents, as well as to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. It is also is a vital channel carrying water south to Russian-occupied Crimea.

Video footage shows a torrent of floodwater gushing through a breach in the dam. Several towns are already flooded, while people in areas further downstream were forced to flee by bus and train.

Around 40,000 people need to be evacuated, Deputy Prosecutor-General Viktoriya Lytvynova said on Ukrainian television – 17,000 people in Ukraine-controlled territory west of the Dnipro River and 25,000 on the Russian-controlled east.