A United Nations report says the Guatemalan security forces were involved in the killing in 1998 of a Roman Catholic bishop, Juan Gerardi.

The report, by the UN mission in Guatemala, said that there was reason to believe that members of the armed forces had acted in the murder and then tried to cover it up.

Bishop Gerardi was found bludgeoned to death days after publishing a report blaming the military for many of the human rights abuses committed during Guatemala's thirty-six year civil war.

The Roman Catholic Church has long maintained that the killing was politically motivated.

Two prosecutors appointed to investigate the case have stepped down because of intimidation.

In response to the report, the Guatemalan government called on the UN mission to prove its claims in the courts.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service