Pope leads Palm Sunday Mass

Pope Francis has begun the most intensive week of the Catholic Church's year with a Palm Sunday Mass in Rome.

Some 250,000 pilgrims crowded St Peter's Square for the outdoor Mass marking the start of Holy Week.

The pontiff has also announced he plans to visit Brazil in July, to attend a Catholic youth gathering in Rio de Janeiro, say Mass on Copacabana beach and pray at the Christ the Redeemer statue.