Pope Francis remained hospitalised and in critical condition Monday as he battles pneumonia in both lungs, the Vatican said amid global concern over the ailing pontiff’s health.

The Pope initially went into care for a complex lung infection that has provoked the early stages of kidney insufficiency, the Vatican said.

AFP reports the 88-year-old head of the Catholic Church was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on February 14 with breathing difficulties and his condition has since worsened.

But the Vatican’s morning bulletin said: “The night passed well, the pope slept and is resting”.

Francis “woke up and is continuing his treatment”, a Vatican source said.

A man brings candles at the statue of John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized, in Rome on February 24, 2025. (ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

He was “in a good mood”, “can get out of bed”, “is not in pain” and was eating “normally”, the source said.

The longest hospitalisation of Francis’s papacy has brought an outpouring of support for the pope with prayers said around the world and tributes left outside the hospital, the AFP report notes.

His initial bronchitis developed into double pneumonia and on Saturday the Vatican warned for the first time that the pope’s condition was critical.

Doctors have said Francis’ condition is touch-and-go, given his age, fragility and pre-existing lung disease. They have warned that the main threat facing Francis is sepsis, a serious infection of the blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia.

AP, AFP contributed to this report