FAREWELL – Mourners fill Saint Peter’s Square on Saturday, April 26, for the funeral of Pope Francis, who died Monday at age 88 after leading the Catholic Church for 12 years. More than 50 world leaders joined the solemn farewell ahead of his burial at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major. ANSA
World leaders, thousands of mourners gather for Francis’ funeral
VATICAN CITY – Massive crowds and world leaders filled Saint Peter’s Square on Saturday to bid farewell to Pope Francis, who passed away on Monday at the age of 88, ending a 12-year papacy that shaped the global Catholic Church.
According to the Vatican, 160 official delegations are attending the funeral, including about 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs.
Among them are US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
An estimated 250,000 people visited St. Peter’s Basilica between Wednesday and Friday to pay their respects as the Pope lay in state.
A similar number is expected for the funeral.
By 9 a.m. local time—an hour before the service was set to begin—Rome police reported that about 140,000 people were already gathered around the square.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was among those who paid tribute earlier in the week.
In accordance with his wishes, Pope Francis will be laid to rest not in the traditional papal tombs beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, but in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major.
The pontiff frequently visited the church to pray before and after his apostolic journeys and expressed his desire in his final testament to be buried there. PNA ANSA
