Crowds file into St. Peter's on last day to pay respects to Pope Francis

25/4/2025 16:55

Tens of thousands filed into St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican throughout the night and into Friday morning on the last day to bid farewell to Pope Francis ahead of his funeral on Saturday.



The basilica was open for most of the night, shutting its doors for only three hours between 2:30 a.m. and 5:30 a.m.



The body of the 88-year-old pope, who died on Monday in his rooms at the Vatican's Santa Marta guesthouse after suffering a stroke, was brought to St. Peter's in a solemn procession on Wednesday.



Since then, almost 130,000 people from all over the world have bid farewell to the pontiff, the Vatican said.



Queues on Friday morning after the basilica reopened for the day were stretching halfway down the main boulevard leading through Rome into the Vatican.

People were pressing forward slowly, some waiting hours, in order to have a few minutes inside to pay their respects to Francis.



Vatican officials plan to end viewings at 7 p.m. on Friday, ahead of a formal rite to seal the late pope's coffin.