Church removes Zambia archbishop

Pope Benedict XVI has excommunicated a Zambian archbishop, Emmanuel Milingo, two days after he ordained four married men as bishops.

A Vatican statement said he had been automatically excommunicated under church law because of his actions.

Archbishop Milingo, 76, who now lives in the US, performed the ordination ceremony in Washington DC on Sunday.

The Catholic diocese in Washington immediately declared the installations to be invalid.

Correspondents say that Archbishop Milingo has long been a controversial figure in the Roman Catholic Church.

Six years ago, he married a South Korean woman at a mass wedding in New York organised by the Korean-based Unification Church - the so-called "Moonies".

He was later persuaded by the Vatican to renounce the marriage, but has since rejoined his wife.