On July 5, the Nicaraguan police, with masked and armed paramilitary support, attacked Sutiaba. The "clean-up operation," as the government called it, resulted in three dead among the parishioners of Father Morales' St. Peter Church.

The church has tried to play a mediating role between Ortega's Sandinista government and protesters who have increasingly demanded his ouster amid demonstrations and clashes in which about 450 people — most of them protesters — have been slain.

Nicaragua President Daniel Ortega said he will not move up elections despite street protests that have seen more than 300 deaths in the past three months, but is open to continuing a dialogue mediated by the Roman Catholic Church.

Government forces began advancing on Masaya's Monimbo neighborhood before dawn and had largely regained control of it by the afternoon for the first time since massive protests against Ortega's government began in mid-April.

A growing number of Americans are open to increases in legal immigration, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.

Supporters of Nicaragua's government attacked a group of Roman Catholic priests led by Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes on Monday as they arrived to help anti-government protesters trapped inside a church.