Calm night for pope, Vatican says, as condition improves

Nuns pray at the feet of a statue of John Paul II at the Gemelli Hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalised, in Rome, on March 8, 2025. [AFP]

Pope Francis passed a quiet night in hospital, the Vatican said Sunday, after revealing that the 88-year-old was responding well to treatment for pneumonia.

"The night was calm, the pope is resting", the Vatican said in its brief morning update on the Argentine, who has been in a special papal suite at Rome's Gemelli hospital since February 14.