Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Monday after suffering a stroke and cardiac arrest, the Vatican said, ending an often turbulent reign in which he sought to overhaul an ancient and divided institution.
He was 88, and had suffered double pneumonia this year, but his death came as a shock after he appeared in St. Peter’s Square in an open-air popemobile to greet cheering crowds on Easter Sunday, suggesting his convalescence was going well.
Francis died of a stroke and irreversible cardiovascular arrest, Vatican doctor Andrea Arcangeli said in the death certificate, which was released by the Vatican. It added that the pope had fallen into a coma before he died.
Besides his recent lung infection, Arcangeli said Francis had also suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes.
A Vatican spokesman said the pope’s coffin might be moved to St. Peter’s Basilica as early as Wednesday morning to allow the faithful to pay their respects.
No date has yet been given for the funeral, but the Vatican said it would normally be expected to take place sometime between Friday and Sunday. A group of cardinals were due to meet on Tuesday to discuss plans.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he would attend the ceremony, which was expected to draw dozens of other world leaders to Rome. Meanwhile, Francis’ native Argentina ordered seven days of mourning, as did neighbouring Brazil.
“The pope of the poor has left us, the pope of the marginalised,” said Jorge Garcia Cuerva, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, a position Francis once held.
Francis had on Sunday made his first prolonged public appearance since being discharged from hospital on March 23 following a 38-day stay for pneumonia, occasionally waving to onlookers and greeting a child who was brought to his side.
(REUTERS)
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