USA Cardinal Prevost elected Pope Leo XIV

USA Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday and has taken the name Pope Leo XIV, the Vatican announced.

As a moderate who was close to Pope Francis and spent years as a missionary in Peru, Prevost becomes the Catholic Church's 267th pontiff and the first American pope in the 2,000-year history of the Church.

Prevost, 69, was elected in a surprise choice to be the new leader of the Catholic Church. He appeared on the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica around 70 minutes after white smoke billowed from a chimney atop the Sistine Chapel signifying the 133 cardinal electors had chosen a new leader for the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church.

"Peace be with all you," Pope Leo XIV said from the balcony in his first public words.

The choice of Prevost was announced by French Cardinal Dominique Mamberti with the Latin words "Habemus Papam" (We have a pope) to tens of thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Square to hear the news.

Originally from Chicago, Prevost has spent most of his career as a missionary in Peru and became a cardinal only in 2023. He has given few media interviews and rarely speaks in public.

Prevost becomes the 267th Catholic pope after the death last month of Pope Francis, who was the first Latin American pope and had led the Church for 12 years and widely sought to open the staid institution up to the modern world.

Francis enacted a range of reforms and allowed debate on divisive issues such as women's ordination and better inclusion of LGBT Catholics.

Ahead of the conclave, some cardinals called for continuity with Francis' vision of greater openness and reform, while others said they wanted to turn back the clock and embrace old traditions.

(Reuters, AP and AFP)