Pope Francis has died, the Vatican announced in a video statement.
The first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church died at the age of 88 at 7:35 am (05:35 GMT) on Monday, Cardinal Kevin Farrell said in a statement published by the Vatican on his Telegram channel.
His death will lead to a process to find a new spiritual leader of the worlds 1.4 billion more or less Catholics.
Francis had suffered several ailments turning his 12 -year -old papacy, with severe complications in recent weeks after an episode of double pneumonia for what happened 38 days at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome.
His death comes a day after a final appearance of a letter before thousands of Catholic pilgrims met in the Plaza de San Pedro for the Mass of the Vatican Sunday outdoors, wishing the crowds “Happy Easter” before an assistant read his blessing.
The concern for his health had increased in recent days, since Francis had challenged the orders of doctors issued after he was evicted from the hospital on March 23 to visit a prison in Rome and carry out other short appointments.
“I am living the best I can,” he told a journalist when asked about the Easter brand in his condition.
“When very sad news comes like this, there is a very well planned procedure for what happens after the death of a pontiff. But I think, for now, people will be surprised,” said the diplomatic editor of Al Jazeera, James Bays, reporting from Rome.
“Yes, this is a man who was very, very sick, but less than 24 hours ago, the pilgrims in the Plaza de San Pedro and worldwide saw the Pope. Easter Sunday was determined to be very, very visible,” he said.
Spiritual leader
When the death of a Pope is confirmed, the body is locked in his department to prevent someone from entering. A autopsy is not allowed to be performed.
Once all officials have reported bone, their papal ring is destroyed in front or witnesses.
A funeral must take place within four to six days.
Fifteen days after the death of the Pope, a papal conclave, a meeting of cardinals under 80 years of age, is expected to vote for his successor.
Once a Pope is chosen and has accepted the appointment, an advertisement of the balcony of the Basilica of San Pedro is made, after which the new Pope makes his first public appearance.
Stranger
Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope was chosen on March 13, 2013, surprising many church observers who had seen the Argentine cleric, known for their concern for the poor, as a stranger.
His papacy marked a radical departure of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, who believed that fostering the most burning believers of 2,000 -year -old institutions was the way to strengthen the Church.
The former archbishop of Buenos Aires’s football was a charismatic communicator with a friendly behavior, which stripped the Vatican of some layers of Opacy and connected with the concerns of the common people.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, paid tribute to Francis after his death, saying that he had always been “on the side of the most vulnerable and the most fragile” and fought for “more justice.”
Irish prime minister Michael Martin said that the “long and distinguished papacy of Francis was marked by his unwavering commitment to the principles of compassion, peace and human dignity.”
Turbulent priest
Francis was known for his efforts to promote global peace and interreligious dialogue.
He made a pilgrimage to South Sudan in 2023 and requested the end of the “absurd and cruel war” in Ukraine.
In his last public appearance on Easter Sunday, Francis asked for a fire in the Gaza Strip and the launch of the removal captives that are held by the Palestinian Group Hamas.
“I appeal to the parties at war: call a high fire, release the hostages and accelerate a gaze people who aspires to a future of peace,” he said at the Easter Mass of the Vatican outdoor.
The same day, he with the vice president of the United States JD Vance. The Pope had previously called the repression of immigration of the Trump administration as a “misfortune.”
He firmly defended the most disadvantaged, from migrants and refugees to communities mistreated by climate change, which was warned that it was a crisis caused by humanity.
He changed the position of the Church on the death penalty, called it inadmissible in all circumstances, and declared the possession of nuclear weapons, not only its use, “immoral.”
His dissemination to LGBTQ Catholics and their repression against the traditionalists also helped cause annoying among conservatives about their progressive.
Meanwhile, the progressives criticized him for reaffirming the celibious and celibious priesthood and defending the opposition of the church to abortion, equating it to “hire a hired killer to solve a problem.”
His greatest evidence occurred in 2018 when a notorious case of sexual abuse of the clergy in Chile failed, and the scandal that festivated under his predecessors exploded again in his surveillance.
Francis suffered an increasingly poor health, from colon surgery in 2021 and a hernia in June 2023 to episodes of bronchitis and knee pain that forced him to use a wheelchair.