The temporary chimney atop the Sistine Chapel released a plume of white smoke on Thursday evening local time, signaling that the 133 cardinals working inside had reached a two-thirds majority to elect a new pope for the Catholic Church.

Pope Leo XIV, in his first address to the media, spoke out against partisan bickering and called for the release of imprisoned journalists. "The way we communicate is of fundamental importance: we must say 'no' to the war of words and images,

The 69-year-old Augustinian missionary, elected in a 24-hour conclave last week, called for journalists to use words for peace, to reject war and to give voice to the voiceless.