Pope Francis dismisses prominent US conservative bishop who was also his fierce critic

In a rare move, Pope Francis on Saturday (Nov 11) dismissed US bishop Joseph Strickland, a prominent Catholic conservative and one of Pope’s fiercest critics who has repeatedly denounced his papacy, the Vatican said in a statement.

The sudden decision to sack a senior Catholic figure came after Francis sent two US bishops to visit Strickland’s Texas diocese in June, as per news agency AFP reports.

(With inputs from agencies)