Pope picks panel in Ireland abuse investigation

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict XVI has named nine top prelates to carry out an investigation of clergy abuse in Ireland starting in the fall.

The pope had pledged an investigation in his March letter to Ireland, as decades of cover-ups of abuse on the island emerged.

The Vatican said Monday the investigation would start in the fall and monitor the effectiveness of current procedures for preventing abuse and seek possible improvements.

The Vatican also announced the pope has accepted the resignation of an Irish-born archbishop who had led the diocese of Benin City in Nigeria and faced accusations that he carried on a 20-year relationship with a woman that began when she was 14. Archbishop Richard Burke had been suspended.

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