Pope Francis’ audiences scheduled for Saturday morning were canceled due to a “mild flu illness”, the Vatican announced in a brief statement. The sovereign pontiff, who has made defense of the environment one of the pillars of his pontificate, is due to deliver a highly anticipated speech to COP 28 in Dubai on December 2.
Pope Francis’ audiences scheduled for Saturday morning were canceled due to a “mild flu illness”, the Vatican announced in a brief statement. “The audiences of the Holy Father scheduled for this morning are canceled due to a slight illness of the flu,” said the press release. This announcement comes a week before his planned trip to Dubai where he is to participate in a UN climate conference.
Pope Francis, who has made defense of the environment one of the pillars of his pontificate, is due to deliver a highly anticipated speech to COP 28 in Dubai on December 2. He should denounce the inaction of the countries concerned and encourage them to drastically reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
The Pope was able to return to his home
The Vatican issued a second brief statement in the afternoon indicating that the pope had undergone “computer tomography,” a medical imaging technique, “to rule out the risk of pulmonary complications.” “The examination gave a negative result” reassuring the doctors of Pope Francis who returned to his home in Vatican City, specifies the press release.
Pope Francis’ health has weakened in recent months, forcing him to use a wheelchair and fueling speculation about a renunciation, in line with his predecessor Benedict XVI. Having colon surgery in 2021, the leader of the 1.3 billion Catholics experienced two new hospitalizations in 2023, including one for an abdominal operation.