The 59-year-old priest, identified as Father Milan Palkovic, was found carrying an air pistol, two knives, a cutter and a screwdriver.

The weapons were identified during a routine screening by the metal detectors. St Peter's Square visitors must pass through the detectors before entering the square.

Palkovic claimed the items were for personal defence and belonged to another man accompanying him, who was also detained.

Both men, part of a group of pilgrims from the Czech Republic, denied any criminal intent and stated they came on a pilgrimage.

Authorities confiscated the weapons and initiated an investigation into the incident.

The priest faces charges of illegal possession of weapons. However, neither he nor the other man has prior criminal records.

Second weapons-related incident

The occurrence was the second weapons-related incident in less than a month at a papal event.

The Regina Caeli event follows a recent incident where a man on New York's "most wanted" list was apprehended in St Peter's Square in the possession of knives, apparently with the intention of attending the pope's general audience.

In that incident, Moises Tejada claimed to have arrived from Moldova after being involved in conflicts in Ukraine.

St Peter's Square was crowded with pilgrims and tourists as Pope Francis held a general audience on 10 April. It was not clear if Tejada, who has convictions for robbery and kidnapping, posed any threat to the pope.

Tejada is currently detained in Italy and awaiting an extradition request from the United States.

In his address, Pope Francis renewed his gratitude to the Swiss Guard for its presence in the Vatican which he said "stands out for its quality, for its kind, attentive, scrupulous style" and for its service, which is always "generous and diligent".

The Vatican has yet to comment on the incidents.

Sources

Catholic News Agency

Crux

Vatican News

Reuters

CathNews New Zealand

The three soldiers, who had joined the guard last May, chose to leave rather than receive the vaccine, which is easily available throughout Italy and which the Vatican offered for free to all of its employees earlier this year.

Their decision was confirmed by the spokesman of the Swiss Guard, Urs Breitenmoser, to the Swiss newspaper Tribune de Geneve.

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The man whose colleagues considered him a dictator is being removed at the request of Pope Francis.

"The Holy Father has ordered that Colonel Daniel Rudolf Anrig end his term on 31 January, at the conclusion of the extension granted after the end of his five-year mandate," read a brief notice in the L'Osservatore Romano.

The 42 year old Anrig was head of the criminal branch of the Swiss police force before being appointed by Pope Benedict in 2008.

His five-year contract had been extended indefinitely, however Pope Francis wants the corps to be run in a less military style, and Swiss guards found that the commander was too rigid and strict.

French media reports attributed the decision to the commander's strictness, quoting one Swiss Guard as calling his removal "the end of a dictatorship." The Vatican and the Guard have declined to provide any official explanation, reports Crux.

As of Monday, the Swiss Guard website made no mention of Anrig's removal.

The pope enjoys a familiar relationship with his bodyguards. He knows them by name and asks about their families.

Swiss Guards are the Swiss soldiers who have served as bodyguards of the Pope since the 16th century and are responsible for the security of the apostolic palace.

They must be single Catholic men aged between 19 and 30, and at least 5ft 8.5 ins tall.

They swear allegiance to the Pope and are famous for their Renaissance-style uniform, with a plumed feather in their helmet, leggings and a high ruff collar.

Sources

• L'Osservatore Romano
• Crux
• Daily Mail
• Image: Daily Mail

David Geisser, 24, who joined the elite Vatican security corps only a month ago, released his book, titled "Buon Appetito", this week.

The cookbook includes recipes for Francis' favourite dishes, such as empanadas; roast sirloin, known as "colita de cuadril"; and "dulce de leche", a milk-based Argentinian dessert that began appearing on Vatican dining tables last year.

But it also features one of St John Paul II's favourite dishes, Polish pierogi, or stuffed dumplings, and Bavarian delicacies favoured by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

Recipes favoured by the Vatican's secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, include gnocchi Vatican-style.

The prefect of the papal household, Msgr Georg Gaenswein, likes veal saltimbocca alla Romana.

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Lt Col Christoph Graf, vice commander of the Swiss Guards, told L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, that it was "a spontaneous act of charity and solidarity". Continue reading