Pope Francis has cancelled official engagements for the third day in a row as he battles an apparent cold.
The Pope last appeared in public on Wednesday, February 26, when he
was seen to be coughing and blowing his nose during the Ash Wednesday
Mass.
On Thursday, the Vatican said the 83-year-old pontiff had a “slight
indisposition” that meant he did not attend an event at the St John
Lateran basilica in Rome on Thursday morning.
It came a day after he kissed heads and touched faces as he met with
crowds in St Peter’s Square, saying he had solidarity with those
suffering from coronavirus.
Now, the Pontiff, who lost part of a lung to a respiratory illness as
a young man, has cancelled more official engagements for the third day
in a row.
He has never cancelled so many official audiences or events in his seven-year papacy.
He is continuing to work from his residence at the Vatican’s Santa
Marta hotel and is receiving people in private, the Vatican press office
said.
Italy is currently in the grips of a coronavirus outbreak that has
seen towns in the north placed on lockdown and travellers from the
region spread the infection to previously unaffected areas of Europe.
More than 800 people in Italy alone have been infected with the
coronavirus.