ROME: Pope Francis ‘ recovery from double pneumonia continued Wednesday as a chest X-ray confirmed improvement, two days after doctors declared he’s no longer in imminent danger of death.
The latest medical bulletin said the pope’s condition remained stable, but indicated a complex picture considering his overall fragility.
The Vatican said the 88-year-old Francis again followed its spiritual retreat remotely, and resumed physical and respiratory therapy after a quiet night. He continues to receive high flows of oxygen through nasal tubes during the day, and a non-invasive mechanical mask to aid his rest at night.
His weekly Wednesday general audience was canceled since the Vatican hierarchy is on retreat this week as part of the Lenten spiritual exercises that have been a mainstay of the Jesuit pope’s pontificate.
Francis faces important milestones this week.
On Thursday, he marks the 12th anniversary of his election as the 266th pope. The Holy See hasn’t said how the anniversary, a public holiday in the Vatican, might be commemorated. No medical bulletin will be issued.
The former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected on the fifth ballot of the 2013 conclave that was called after Pope Benedict XVI resigned.
While Francis has praised Benedict’s humility in stepping down and said he might follow in his footsteps, more recently he has said the papacy is a job for life.
Another milestone comes Friday, when Francis marks four weeks of hospitalization.
St. John Paul II has the record for a hospital stay, at 55 days in 1981 when he underwent a minor surgical operation and then was treated for a cytomegalovirus infection.
Francis is on track to equal the second-longest stay, 28 days, which John Paul recorded in 1994 when he had surgery to repair his right hip joint after he fractured his right femur in a fall, according to Gemelli hospital.
The Vatican has released no photos or video of Francis since he was admitted. The pope recorded an audio message last week to thank people for their prayers, though the weakness and breathlessness of his voice made clear how frail he was.
Vatican says a chest X-ray confirms improvements in the pope’s condition
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Vatican says a chest X-ray confirms improvements in the pope’s condition
- The Vatican said the 88-year-old Francis again followed its spiritual retreat remotely, and resumed physical and respiratory therapy after a quiet night
- On Thursday, he marks the 12th anniversary of his election as the 266th pope
Nine Nigerian troops killed, several missing in jihadist ambush
- “We lost nine soldiers in an ambush by Daesh-WAP terrorists and many others are still missing,” a military officer said
- The soldiers dispersed in all directions following sustained gunfire from the militants
KANO, Nigeria: At least nine Nigerian soldiers were killed and over a dozen are missing after Daesh-aligned militants ambushed a military patrol in northeast Borno state, military and militia sources told AFP Tuesday.
Fighters from Daesh West Africa Province (Daesh-WAP) on Friday used explosives and guns to attack a column of more than 30 troops on foot patrol outside the town of Damask near the border with Niger, the sources said.
“We lost nine soldiers in an ambush by Daesh-WAP terrorists and many others are still missing,” a military officer said.
The soldiers, who were 25 kilometers (15 miles) from their base, dispersed in all directions following sustained gunfire from the militants, said the officer who asked not to be identified.
“The terrorists detonated an explosive device they had planted on the road in advance, increasing the casualties and confusion among the soldiers,” he said.
Eight soldiers managed to return to base while the rest remain missing, including their commander with the rank of a major, the officer said.
“A man who identified himself as an Daesh-WAP terrorist keeps answering the call to the commander’s mobile phone, suggesting he is in the hands of the terrorists,” he added.
Ya-Mulam Kadai, a spokesman for government-funded anti-militant militia assisting the military in Damask, gave the same casualty toll.
The nine bodies of the slain soldiers were recovered by a military search team deployed at the scene of the attack, he said.
The military did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
The Nigerian military has in recent weeks intensified ground operations against Daesh-WAP, particularly in its Sambisa forest stronghold, with the military making regular claims of killing huge numbers of militant fighters.
Daesh-WAP and rival Boko Haram factions have been attacking military targets, raiding bases, laying ambush and planting explosives against patrols on highways.
Nigeria’s insurgency has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced around two million in the northeast since it erupted in 2009, according to the United Nations.
The conflict has spilled into neighboring Niger, Cameroon and Chad, leading the region to launch a military coalition to fight the militant groups.
