Pope Francis appears in public for first time since surgery

Pope Francis leads the Angelus prayer from a balcony of the Gemelli hospital, as he recovers following scheduled surgery on his colon, in Rome, Italy, July 11, 2021. [Reuters, Guglielmo Mangiapane]

Pope Francis appeared in public on Sunday for the first time since undergoing intestinal surgery a week ago, stepping out on a balcony at Rome's Gemelli hospital to lead his weekly prayer before hundreds of people.

The Pope is continuing a normal recovery from intestinal surgery, gradually resuming work, walking and eating with aides.

The 84-year-old Pope was in hospital after undergoing a three-hour operation to remove part of his colon, which the Vatican said had narrowed severely.

It is the first time Pope Francis has been hospitalised since he became pope in 2013.

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