Detained Nicaraguan Catholic bishop, Ortega critic to face trial

FILE PHOTO: Rolando Alvarez, bishop of the Diocese of Matagalpa and Esteli and critical of the Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, poses for a photo at a Catholic church in Managua, Nicaragua May 20, 2022. REUTERS/Maynor Valenzuela/File Photo

MANAGUA (Reuters) - A prominent Catholic bishop in Nicaragua who has sharply criticized authoritarian President Daniel Ortega will go to trial while under house arrest, a judge ruled on Tuesday, in the latest clamp down on dissent in the country.

Police arrested Bishop Rolando Alvarez in August, capturing him after he barricaded himself in church property for several weeks along with other priests who are now behind bars at the notorious Chipote prison.