Pope Accepts Resignation Of Minsk Archbishop

The Vatican said Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Minsk, who was briefly prevented from reentering Belarus after he criticized the Belarusian government's harsh crackdown on opposition protesters. Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz was allowed to return to Belarus last month after being stopped from reentering the country following a trip to Poland in August.

While there, Kondrusiewicz criticized the crackdown on protests against the contested reelection of strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka. It was not immediately clear whether Kondrusiewicz's resignation was expected.