A sharply critical United Nations panel accused the Vatican on Wednesday of putting its reputation and interests above those of children who had been sexually abused by priests. It called on the Vatican to immediately remove all known or suspected molesters from their posts and report them to civil authorities.

The Queen is to meet Pope Francis for the first time on a visit to the Vatican in April, the British embassy in Rome has announced. The meeting – the first between the supreme governor of the Church of England and the leader of the Roman Catholic church since 2010 – will take place as part of a wider visit to Rome.

A young Irish man has become the first person ever with Down Syndrome to do a brief internship as a journalist with Vatican Radio. Michael Gannon spent January 13 to January 24 at the English desk of the broadcaster. "It was an important experience for us," said Sean Patrick Lovett, head of the English-language programs. "It forced us to see reality from a different perspective.

Three daunting facts confront anyone interested in buying one of Amedeo Modigliani’s distinctive elongated portraits. They tend to have multimillion price tags; they are a favorite of forgers; and despite an abundance of experts, no inventory of his works is considered both trustworthy and complete. Christian Parisot, for instance, the author of one catalog and the president of the Modigliani Institute in Rome, is due in court this week in Rome on charges that he knowingly authenticated fake works.

The judge who sentenced Amanda Knox to 28½ years for the murder of her British roommate was widely criticized Monday for suggesting Knox's former boyfriend might have escaped guilt by trying to pin the murder on Knox.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' sales jumped by 8% in January, while competitors blamed blustery winter storms for driving down their figures which were released on Monday. Sales of large vehicles produced by the Jeep and Dodge brands of Fiat Chrysler helped to boost its figures.

Venice Mayor Giorgio Orsoni wants to put his city on the map as a site of internationally weighty institutions, and a possible Islamic Museum plus study center is one of them.
On Monday, the mayor thanked Premier Enrico Letta for considering such a museum for the iconic city's Grand Canal, which in Orsoni's view would dovetail nicely with an existing Museum of Oriental Arts, a Council of Europe office in St.