WORLD : ‘Vatican Has AIDS,’ Priest Says
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VATICAN CITY — A man identifying himself as an American priest shocked the opening session of a Vatican conference on AIDS today by unfolding a banner bearing the slogan “The Vatican has AIDS” in front of the delegates.
Vatican gendarmes grabbed the priest and hustled him out of the hall to their headquarters for questioning.
Vatican sources said the man, dressed in a black suit with a clerical collar, identified himself as John White, a U.S. Catholic priest, but he carried no identity documents and police were checking to confirm his identity.
The incident happened around noon during the inaugural session of the conference in which more than 500 international scientists and theologians gathered to discuss aspects of the deadly acquired immune deficiency syndrome for three days.
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