Pope Francis asks for prayers in message from hospital

Pope Francis has asked Catholics to pray for him, as he continues to receive treatment in hospital for double pneumonia.

The pontiff was unable to deliver the traditional Angelus prayer in person for the second Sunday running.

But in a message written over the last few days, he said he was "confidently continuing" his hospitalisation at Rome's Gemelli Hospital and "carrying on with the necessary treatment".

The message comes after the Vatican revealed on Saturday that the 88-year-old's condition continues to be "critical".

In his message, released on Sunday, the Pope thanked the doctors and health workers at the hospital, and well-wishers who sent in messages.

"In recent days I have received many messages of affection, and I have been particularly struck by the letters and drawings from children," he wrote.

"Thank you for this closeness, and for the prayers of comfort I have received from all over the world! I entrust you all to the intercession of Mary, and I ask you to pray for me."

Well-wishers have continued to pray outside the hospital.

Dozens of people have been seen lighting candles and leaving them at the foot of a nearby statue of the late Pope John Paul II.

The 88-year-old was first admitted to hospital on 14 February after experiencing difficulties breathing for several days.

He is especially prone to lung infections due to developing pleurisy - an inflammation around the lungs - as an adult and having part of one of his lungs removed at age 21.

During his 12 years as leader of the Roman Catholic church, the Argentine has been admitted to hospital several times, including in March 2023 when he spent three nights in hospital with bronchitis.

The Pope has asked for openness about his health, so the Vatican has started to release daily statements. The tone and length of the announcements has varied, sometimes leaving Pope-watchers to attempt to read between the lines.

On Saturday, the Vatican said the Roman Catholic leader was alert and spent the day in an armchair, but that he was "not out of danger" and that he was "more unwell" than he was on Friday.

They added the pontiff needed blood transfusions due to a low platelet count - associated with anaemia - and he required a "high flow" of oxygen.

Doctors treating the Pope confirmed this week that he was responding to medication but his condition was complex and the slightest change of circumstance would upset what was called a "delicate balance".

"He is the Pope," as one of them put it. "But he is also a man."

The Pope also used his message on Sunday to highlight the third anniversary of the war in Ukraine on Monday, and called on people to remember all victims of armed conflict and to "pray for the gift of peace in Palestine, Israel and throughout the Middle East, Myanmar, Kivu and Sudan".

The Angelus prayer is usually delivered by the Pope from a window of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican and is accompanied by a short message.