Court hears secretly recorded phone call between Pope Francis, top Cardinal

Pope Francis was secretly recorded during a phone call with one of his former top cardinals discussing the Holy See’s payments to free a nun held hostage by al-Qaeda-linked militants in northern Africa.

In a shocking legal move, the recorded phone call between Pope Francis and Cardinal Angelo Becciu — one of 10 defendants in an ongoing embezzlement trial — was played before the Vatican court.

In the call, Becciu can be heard asking the Pope to confirm that he had authorized payments to free the nun, who was kidnapped...