Pope not fully recovered, condition not life-threatening, doctors say
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(LONDON) — Pope Francis has not yet fully recovered from illness, but he is not in danger of losing his life, doctors from Gemelli Hospital said during a press conference on Friday.
Pope Francis was hospitalized with a respiratory tract infection and now has pneumonia in both lungs. He has been hospitalized since last week.
“The pope is fine, but the reason we are here is it has been one week in the hospital,” doctors said in English, saying that Francis is 88 years old and mortal, but adding he has retained his humor in the situation.
The pope was admitted to a hospital last week for “necessary tests” and to continue his ongoing bronchitis treatment, the Vatican said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ROME and LONDON — Pope Francis rested overnight in the hospital, the Vatican said on Sunday.
“The night passed peacefully. The Pope rested,” the Holy See said in a short statement.
The 88-year-old pontiff underwent another round of clinical tests on Sunday morning, Vatican sources told ABC News. A medical update was expected to be released later in the day.
Francis continued on Sunday to receive oxygen therapy to aid his breathing, the sources said. Francis on Saturday morning suffered a “prolonged” asthmatic respiratory crisis, during which doctors supplied him with oxygen, the Vatican said.
The pontiff in a written prayer released on Sunday said he was “confidently continuing” his hospitalization, adding that “rest is also part of the therapy!”
“I sincerely thank the doctors and health workers of this hospital for the attention they are showing me and the dedication with which they carry out their service among the sick,” he said.
Asthmatic respiratory crisis indicates the pope struggled to maintain a sufficient oxygen level when breathing on his own, according to medical experts.
The Vatican on Saturday said the pope, who has led the Catholic Church since 2013, remained in critical condition.
The pope has been hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital since Feb. 14 following a bout with bronchitis.
He was diagnosed with pneumonia on Tuesday, according to the Vatican.
Apart from his medical team and security, the pope has not had visitors apart from his closest aides, sources said.
ABC News’ Ivan Pereira and Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — President Donald Trump on Monday said that further attacks or retaliation by the Houthis would be considered an attack by Iran and it would face “dire” consequences.p
Trump’s threat comes after the U.S. launched a new series of airstrikes against the Yemeni group beginning Saturday. The Houthis on Sunday claimed to have thwarted “a hostile attack the enemy was preparing to launch against our country.” A U.S. official told ABC News that the Houthis fired 11 drones and one ballistic missile at the USS Harry S Truman aircraft carrier group in the Red Sea, none of which came close to hitting any U.S. vessels.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump called the Houthis “sinister mobsters and thugs” said their attacks “emanate from, and are created by, IRAN.”
Trump said Iran is “dictating every move, giving them the weapons, supplying them with money and highly sophisticated Military equipment, and even, so-called, ‘Intelligence.'”
“Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!” Trump said.
The Houthis claimed to have fired 18 ballistic missiles and a drone in two separate attacks over the previous 24 hours. All drones were downed by fighters — 10 shot down by Air Force planes and one by Navy planes — while the ballistic missile was not intercepted as it fell far short of the vessels, the U.S. official said.
Trump described the U.S. strikes as “decisive and powerful military action” against the Iranian-backed group. The Houthis have been targeting Western-linked shipping and launching munitions into Israel since the fall of 2022, in protest of Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“They have waged an unrelenting campaign of piracy, violence, and terrorism against American, and other, ships, aircraft and drones,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday. “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective.”
A U.S. official confirmed to ABC News on Sunday that U.S. air and naval assets hit dozens of Houthi targets in Yemen, including missiles, radars and drone and air defense systems. The official characterized the attacks as an opening salvo against the Houthis that sends a strong message to Iran.
The Yemeni Health Ministry said the strikes killed 53 people and injured 98 more.
Speaking with reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said he was not concerned about retaliatory strikes related to the latest American strikes.
National security adviser Mike Waltz told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that the strikes represented “an overwhelming response that actually targeted multiple Houthi leaders and took them out. And the difference here is, one, going after the Houthi leadership, and two, holding Iran responsible.”
Detailing their latest attack on U.S. Navy vessels, the Houthis said in a Sunday statement that they will “continue to ban the passage of Israeli ships through the zone of operations until the blockade on the Gaza Strip is lifted.”
ABC News’ Will Gretsky, Nicholas Kerr and Michelle Stoddart contributed to this report.
(ROATÁN, HONDURAS) — An aircraft crashed into the sea with 17 people on board in Roatán, Honduras, on Monday, according to local officials.
Honduras Civil Aviation confirmed that the accident occurred at 6:18 p.m. at Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport. There were 15 passengers and two crew members on board, HCA said.
The Jetstream 32 was departing from Roatán with the intended destination of La Ceiba, which is located on the north coast of Honduras. Preliminary reports indicate that the plane crashed seconds after takeoff.
Honduran police said that they’re present at the scene and attempting to rescue those involved in the crash.
Honduran President Xiomara Castro released a statement saying that she activated an Emergency Operations Committee.
“They have immediately arrived at the scene of the plane crash that occurred 1 km from Roatán International Airport and are tirelessly assisting in the unfortunate incident,” she said in the statement.
“The public hospitals in San Pedro Sula and La Ceiba are now ready to treat injured passengers,” Castro added.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
