Vatican pushed to reveal scope of child sexual abuse

Dark rainclouds cover the area near the Vatican's Saint Peter's Basilica, in Rome December 12, 2008. REUTERS/Chris Helgren

GENEVA (Reuters) - United Nations child protection experts grilled Vatican delegates on Thursday on how Roman Catholic officials handled the decades-long sexual abuse of minors by priests that Pope Francis called "the shame of the Church".

The officials, called to account for the first time since the Holy See signed the U.N. children's rights charter in 1990, argued that the Church recognised the problem and had drawn up clear guidelines to protect children from predator priests.