Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, has died, the Vatican said in a video statement on Monday, ending an often-turbulent reign marked by division and tension.
He was 88, and had survived a serious bout of double pneumonia.
“Dear brothers and sisters, it is with profound sadness I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis,” Cardinal Kevin Farrell announced on the Vatican’s TV channel.
Francis’ death comes a day after the pope had made his first prolonged public appearance since being discharged on March 23 from a 38-day hospital stay for pneumonia.
On Sunday, Easter day, Francis had entered St. Peter’s Square in an open-air popemobile shortly after mid-day, greeting cheering crowds.
During a fleeting appearance before thousands of Catholic pilgrims gathered in St Peter’s Square for the Vatican’s open-air Easter Sunday mass, Pope Francis called for a ceasefire in Gaza.
