New Mexican leader to invite pope to help end violence epidemic

Mexico City: Mexico's president-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Tuesday he plans to invite Pope Francis in an effort to restore "peace" to the violence-wracked country where organized crime has claimed more than 200,000 lives since 2006.

"We are going to invite Pope Francis," as well as "religious leaders, UN and human rights officials to bring everyone together with the goal of achieving peace in our nation," Lopez Obrador said following talks with outgoing leader Enrique Pena Nieto.