37 m. ago Pope Francis: thousands more pay respects on second day of lying in state

More than 60,000 people have viewed body of late pontiff since Wednesday morning, says VaticanThousands of mourners lined up for hours on a second day to catch a glimpse of Pope Francis’s body, after St Peter’s Basilica stayed open all night to cope with the huge crowds who had come to pay their final respects.The 16th-century basilica, where Francis’s simple wooden coffin is placed on the main altar, was scheduled to close at midnight on Wednesday but remained open until 5.30am to allow in those who still wished to enter. After just 90 minutes of cleaning, it was reopened at 7am. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Pope Francis’s final moments revealed: How doctor knew he was gone, and his last regret

‘In that moment I knew there was nothing more to do. He was in a coma’

Politics

4 h. ago The hero surgeon who saved Andrew Flintoff's face: Doctor reveals how star was pieced back together 'like a jigsaw' after suffering facial injuries in 'top five' worst he'd ever seen

Mr Jahrad Haq, an oral and maxillofacial surgeon, was tasked with operating on the Ashes hero after he was airlifted to St George's Hospital in Tooting, south London, following his horror crash.

Events

5 h. ago Pope Francis: basilica stays open overnight so thousands can pay final respects

More than 50,000 people, queuing for hours, viewed body of late pontiff over 24-hour period, says VaticanSt Peter’s Basilica has reopened for thousands of people to pay their final respects to Pope Francis for a second day, following a brief pause after keeping its doors open all night.The 16th-century basilica, where Francis’s simple wooden coffin is placed on the main altar, was scheduled to close at midnight but remained open until 5.30am to allow in those who still wished to enter. Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago Doctor reveals details of Pope Francis’s final moments, and the pontiff’s last regret

‘In that moment I knew there was nothing more to do. He was in a coma’

Politics

6 h. ago AP PHOTOS: Faithful join the line to pay their final respects to Pope Francis

So many mourners lined up to see Pope Francis lying in state in a simple wooden coffin inside St. Peter’s Basilica that the Vatican kept the doors open all night to accommodate the higher-than-expected turnout.

Culture

7 h. ago Inside the Pope's final moments: Pontiff's doctor reveals details about the staff's battle to revive him

Sergio Alfieri, his surgeon, said he saw the late pontiff on Saturday afternoon in good spirits.

Events

11 h. ago Thousands pay final respects to Pope Francis as Vatican considers extending public viewing

The public viewing of Pope Francis' casket is scheduled to resume Thursday, a day after it began with numbers that were so strong that the Vatican said it would consider longer hours to meet the demand

Economics

11 h. ago ‘Who wept for these people?’ Francis’s papacy was defined by compassion for refugees

From personally promising to relocate vulnerable asylum seekers to speaking out against ‘cruel’ policies, the late pope was a voice for the marginalisedOn a glorious spring day almost a decade ago, an Airbus A320 took off from Mytilene airport on the Greek island of Lesbos. For what seemed like an age, a small group of bystanders, including officials and the media, watched in disbelief until the plane veered left over the sun-speckled Aegean Sea and its Alitalia livery could no longer be discerned. On board was Pope Francis, who had spent barely five hours on Lesbos, then at the centre of the refugee crisis on Europe’s eastern fringes.The whirlwind tour had been replete with symbolism but it was the pontiff’s fellow travellers who had caused such surprise. Moments after the head of the Roman Catholic Church had entered the aircraft, 12 refugees had also appeared, cheerfully making their way across the runway with expressions of stunned relief, their first taste of freedom after inca...

Events

22 h. ago Thousands from around world wait hours to visit coffin of Pope Francis

Pope’s simple open casket lies on main altar of St Peter’s Basilica as mourners say: ‘It’s a privilege to be here’ Thousands of people queued for hours under the hot spring sun in St Peter’s Square on Wednesday to pay their final respects to Pope Francis, whose simple wooden coffin has been placed on the main altar of the 16th-century basilica, where he will lie in state until Friday evening.The pope, the head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, died at his home in Casa Santa Marta on Monday aged 88 after a stroke and subsequent heart failure. He had been recovering from double pneumonia, which had kept him in hospital for five weeks. Continue reading...

Politics

39 h. ago The Pope's final resting place: Chipboard barrier hides niche where Francis will be buried, four miles from the Vatican, in accordance with his wishes

The Argentine pontiff, who died on Easter Monday, aged 88, has broken with tradition and asked that his final resting place be away from St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

Culture

41 h. ago Pope Francis dies latest: Prince William and Trump to attend funeral while details of pope’s final hours emerge

Tens of thousands of pilgrims are expected to flock to the Vatican for Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday

Politics

41 h. ago Pope Francis' final moments show rapid deterioration before his death

The pontiff is understood to have woken at 6am on Monday and was fine for at least an hour. However around 7am Vatican medics rushed to an emergency call from his Casa Santa Marta apartment.

Events

45 h. ago Pope Francis' final moments show rapid deterioration before pontiff's death

Pope Francis died at 7.35am on Monday after a cerebral stroke that led to a coma and irreversible heart failure the Vatican confirmed with a police escort to a hospital having to be cancelled

Events

45 h. ago Details of Pope Francis's final hours revealed as Prince William to attend funeral on behalf of King

Pontiff’s final words are revealed by the Vatican as funeral is confirmed to take place at St. Peter's Basilica on Saturday

Politics

46 h. ago Pope’s final words of thanks to nurse revealed as funeral plans begin

Prince William will attend funeral at Vatican on behalf of King Charles

Politics

47 h. ago Look to his stand on Gaza: Pope Francis gave us moral leadership in amoral times | Owen Jones

With his outspokenness about Israel’s outrages, the late pope showed up the hypocrisy of the media and politiciansThe deaths of major public figures can provoke the most grotesque outpourings of hypocrisy. So it goes for Pope Francis, now lauded by leaders and media outlets that were complicit in the very evils he condemned. “Pope Francis was a pope for the poor, the downtrodden and the forgotten,” said Keir Starmer, a prime minister who stripped the winter fuel payment from many vulnerable pensioners before launching an assault on disability benefits predicted to drive up to 400,000 Britons into poverty. “He promoted an end to suffering across the globe,” wrote Joe Biden, enabler of Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza.Indeed, the fate of Gaza seemed to preoccupy the pope’s final years. In his last Easter address, he condemned the “death and destruction” and resulting “dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation” – a powerful sermon that hardly any western media outlets covered. I...

Politics

52 h. ago Doctor reveals exact amount of sleep needed to cut heart attack or stroke risk

Sleeping a certain amount of hours reduces the risk of a heart attack or stroke according to new research. Those who sleep more or less than this are at greater risk of cardiovascular disease

Events

53 h. ago Pope Francis' final hours as he defied doctors before he died

The Vatican announced the pontiff's death just a day after he held an Easter address

Events

59 h. ago ‘A signal of simplicity’: Pope Francis’s funeral will be his final humble gesture

One of pontiff’s last acts was to simplify papal rites, stripping away elaborate rituals and scaling back processionLatest updates: tributes paid after Pope Francis dies aged 88When the late Pope Francis stepped on to the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica to give his first speech as leader of the Catholic church in March 2013, he cast away formality by dressing in simple white robes instead of the regal ermine-trimmed cape usually worn by newly elected pontiffs.The next day, Francis – a name chosen in honour of Francis of Assisi, the Italian saint who renounced a life of luxury to help the poor – returned to the Rome hotel in which he had stayed before the conclave to pick up his luggage and pay his bill. He substituted a plush apostolic apartment for a simple room within the Vatican walls and, unlike his predecessors, did not spend his summers in Castel Gandolfo, an opulent 12th-century fortress close to Rome. Continue reading...

Politics