'Mafia martyr' Don Giuseppe Puglisi beatified in Sicily

More than 50,000 people have attended the beatification of Don Giuseppe Puglisi, a Roman Catholic priest murdered by the Mafia in 1993.

The ceremony, in the Sicilian capital Palermo, marks the penultimate step on the path to being made a saint.

The BBC's David Willey in Rome said that Saturday's ceremony "marked something of a turning point in the attitude of the authorities here to the Mafia".

"This is a strong statement not only from the Catholic Church, but from Rome", he added.