Pope appoints new envoy to France after abuse claims

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis appointed a new ambassador to France on Saturday, following the resignation of an archbishop who has been questioned by police on sexual assault claims.

The new envoy is Italian Archbishop Celestino Migliore, 67, who had been serving as the Holy See´s ambassador to Russia, the Vatican said. Migliore takes up the post left empty by Luigi Ventura, who resigned in December after reaching the age limit for his post.

He had been stripped of his diplomatic immunity in July in an unprecedented move by the Vatican, which is struggling with a wave of allegations of sexual abuse by clerics.