Pope Francis made his first public appearance in more than five weeks on Sunday, waving from a balcony at Rome’s Gemelli hospital before leaving the facility.
Francis, 88, appeared on a balcony on the tenth floor of the hospital shortly after noon on Sunday. Using a wheelchair, as he has for several years, the Pope smiled and waved at well-wishers gathered below.
He then returned to his hospital room and was discharged from hospital about half an hour later.
The Pope was admitted on February 14 with a severe respiratory infection that became the most serious health crisis of his 12-year papacy.
His doctors said on Saturday that it would take “a lot of time” for his ageing body to fully heal, and said they had prescribed him a further two months of rest at the Vatican.
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