Critically-ill pope had a good night, Vatican says

Pope Francis, hospitalized in critical condition with pneumonia in both lungs, spent a peaceful night and was "resting" on Monday, the Vatican said amidst global concern over the pontiff's health.

The 88-year-old head of the Catholic Church was admitted to the Gemelli hospital in Rome 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."

This is the longest hospitalization of Francis's papacy and Catholics around the world have prayed for his recovery amid the worries about his condition.

An initial bronchitis diagnosis developed into double pneumonia and on Feb. 22 the Vatican warned for the first time that his condition was critical.

On Feb. 23 it said Francis continues to receive "high-flow" oxygen through a nasal cannula, and blood tests demonstrated an "initial, mild, renal failure, currently under control."

Francis is alert but "the complexity of the clinical picture, and the need to wait for the pharmacological treatments to have some effect, mean that the prognosis remains reserved," it concluded.

Well-wishers have left candles outside the Gemelli hospital, where Francis is in a special papal suite on the 10th floor, and where the Vatican said he took part in a mass on Feb. 23 morning.