Pope Francis funeral guest list is revealed as world leaders fly into Rome and faithful queue for last chance to see his open coffin with 130,000 already bidding farewell
Hundreds of high-profile world leaders are flying into Rome today ahead of Pope Francis' funeral as thousands of Catholic faithful queue at the Vatican to pay their respects on the final day of his lying in state.
At least 130 foreign delegations had confirmed their attendance at the pontiff's funeral in St. Peter Basilica's tomorrow, including around 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs, the Vatican has said.
US President Donald Trump, Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky, and Argentine President Javier Milei are among the heads of state converging on the Italian capital today.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Irish premier Micheal Martin and the nation's President Michael D Higgins are also on the guest list to attend tomorrow's ceremony.
Britain's Prince William is attending the funeral on behalf of King Charles. Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, the King and Queen of Sweden, and the Crown Prince and Princess of Norway are among the royals attending the service.
Italian and Vatican authorities have launched a huge security operation around St Peter's Square with drones blocked, snipers on roofs and fighter jets on standby. Police say that further check-points will be activated tonight.
The Vatican is making final preparations for Francis' funeral today as the last of the huge crowds of mourners files through St Peter's Basilica to view his open coffin.
Thousands of mourners packed the Via della Conciliazione, the wide avenue leading to the Vatican, this morning for the third and final day of the pope's lying-in-state.
Almost 130,000 people from all over the world have bid farewell to the pontiff, who died on Monday in his rooms at the Vatican's Santa Marta hotel after suffering a stroke, since his coffin was brought to St. Peter's on Wednesday.
Almost 130,000 people from all over the world have bid farewell to Pope Francis since his open coffin was moved to St. Peter's Basilica on Wednesday. Mourners are pictured outside the basilica this morning as the queue for the final day of his lying in state
The faithful have joined a long line outside St Peter's Square to view the body of Pope Francis laying in state inside St Peter's Basilica today
Mourners, flanked by Swiss Guard soldiers, pay their respects to Pope Francis as he lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Thursday
Security personnel stand guard as Pope Francis lies in state inside St. Peter's Basilica this morning. Italian and Vatican authorities have launched a huge security operation around St Peter's Square with drones blocked, snipers on roofs and fighter jets on standby. Police say that further check-points will be activated tonight
People wait in a queue near the Vatican to see Pope Francis lying in state today
People queue to enter St. Peter's Basilica this morning on the final day of Pope Francis' lying in state. The Basilica was open for most of the night, shutting its doors for only three hours between 2.30am and 5.30am
Vast crowds are expected to gather ahead of Saturday's funeral in St Peter's Square, which will see the highest-ranking members of the Catholic Church and major political leaders come together to bid a final farewell to Francis.
At least 130 foreign delegations are expected at his funeral and a no-fly zone will be in force. Trump, who is travelling with his wife First Lady Melania Trump, is scheduled to arrive today after Francis' coffin has been sealed.
The US President is expected to have a 'third-tier seat' at Francis' funeral mass despite being among the first to confirm that he would be attending the service.
The Vatican has not yet released the official seating chart, but tradition suggests that precedence for front row seating will be given to Catholic royalty.
Foreign dignities will likely be sat in large block on one side of the coffin, across from the cardinals, patriarchs, bishops and archbishops.
Catholic royals will be seated in the front row, followed by non-Catholic royals, including the Prince of Wales.
World leaders, heads of states and other foreign dignitaries will then be sat behind them.
Trump, however, is not likely to be pleased with the seating arrangements, given that he mocked his predecessor Joe Biden for having to sit in the rear at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral three years ago.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - who is not attending the mass - offered his condolences late Thursday, after a notable delay that some attributed to strained ties with the Vatican, as Francis had repeatedly criticised Israel's conduct in Gaza.
Israel will only be represented at the funeral by its ambassador to the Vatican.
A UK cardinal has predicted the funeral will be a 'masterpiece' in stage managing 'big egos' as world leaders fly in to pay their respects.
The leader of Catholics in England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, said organisers of what will be an enormous gathering of well-known names 'are geniuses at dealing with these big events'.
In an interview with the PA news agency in Rome, the Archbishop of Westminster said the funeral will be 'without a doubt another masterpiece of stage management when you consider those state leaders who have high opinions of their importance'.
He added: 'In the past, I've seen it here over and over again that the combination of Rome and the Holy See, they actually are geniuses at dealing with these big events.
'I think they've been doing it since the emperors ruled Rome - that they know how to deal with big egos. And I think every leader of a nation that comes here on Saturday, will go home reasonably content.'
Cardinal Nichols has described recent days since the Pope's death on Easter Monday as 'deeply emotional'.
He told how 'moving' it was to sit in the basilica and watch as others solemnly filed past the coffin this week.
Meanwhile, queues of faithful filed into St. Peter's throughout the night and in the early hours of Friday, on the last day to bid farewell to Pope Francis ahead of his funeral on Saturday.
St Peter's, for a second night in a row, was kept open past the scheduled hours to accommodate the queues.
The Basilica was open for most of the night, shutting its doors for only three hours between 2.30am and 5.30am.
Francis' coffin will be closed at 8pm (6pm GMT) today in a ceremony attended by senior cardinals.
After his funeral tomorrow, the coffin will be driven at a walking pace to be buried at Francis' favourite church, the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major.
Mourners in the final queues to see the pope's remains have expressed their gratitude to the late pontiff.
Nicoletta Tomassetti, 60, who visited the Basilica in the very early hours of Friday morning, said: 'Night is the most intimate moment, the Lord always manifests himself at night.
'It was very emotional, in prayer, I asked the pope for some things and I know he will give them to me.'
Miracles Luna, a 74-year-old retired doctor from the Dominican Republic who attended the lying-in-state Thursday, said she thought he was 'one of the best popes we have in the Catholic Church'.
'He was very merciful, identified with the people, poor people, so for me, for us he is the best one.'
The Argentine pontiff, who had long suffered failing health, defied doctors' orders by appearing at Easter, the most important moment in the Catholic calendar.
It would be his last public appearance.
Condolences have flooded in from around the world for the Jesuit, an energetic reformer who championed those on the fringes of society in his 12 years as head of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics.
He used his last speech to rail against those who stir up 'contempt... towards the vulnerable, the marginalised, and migrants'.
People queue inside St. Peter's Basilica this morning on the last day to bid farewell to Pope Francis ahead of his funeral tomorrow
Pope Francis lies in state in a coffin at St Peter's Basilica at The Vatican, on April 25, 2025. Queues of faithful filed into St. Peter's throughout the night and in the early hours of Friday to say their final goodbyes to the pontiff
Solemn looking women, including one who appears to be crying, pay their respects as Pope Francis lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica today
Nuns queue for security checks to enter St Peter's Square and pay their respects to late Pope Francis at St Peter's Basilica this morning
Worshippers from the United States pray outside St. Peter's Basilica today, where Pope Francis lying in state. Mourners in the final queues to see the pope's remains today have expressed their gratitude to the late pontiff
Visitors queue today to enter Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, where the Pope will be buried after his funeral tomorrow
Francis' coffin will be closed at 8pm (6pm GMT) today in a ceremony attended by senior cardinals. After his funeral tomorrow, the coffin will be driven at a walking pace to be buried at Francis' favourite church, the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major. Mourners are pictured queuing to enter the Basilica of Saint Mary Major today
Cardinal Stephen Brislin arrives at the Vatican today, as Pope Francis lies in state in St. Peter's
A group of nuns and other faithful join a long line outside St Peter's Square to view the body of Pope Francis laying in state inside St Peter's Basilica today
People line up to pay their respects to Pope Francis lying in state inside St. Peter's today
The pope's coffin was set before St Peter's altar for his three days of lying-in-state, with Francis dressed in his papal vestments - a red chasuble, white mitre and black shoes.
This evening, at the end of his lying-in-state in the basilica, Francis's coffin will be closed privately in the presence of a few aides.
Following Saturday's open-air funeral in the square, Francis's remains will be taken through the streets of Rome in another break with tradition, as his body is brought to a simple underground tomb in the basilica of Saint Mary Major, as per his instructions.
The hearse will pass down Rome's Fori Imperiali - where the city's ancient temples lie - and then the Colosseum, according to officials.
Big screens will be set up along the route on which to watch the ceremony, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said.
Cardinal Nichols said this will 'enlarge the stage on which this is played out, and will give the people of Rome, especially, something that they will appreciate very deeply'.
He added: '(Pope Francis's) favourite title was 'I'm Bishop of Rome', so they will say goodbye to their bishop.'
The pontiff was a champion of underdogs, and a group of 'poor and needy', will be at Santa Maria Maggiore to welcome the coffin, the Vatican said. Francis will be interred in the ground, his simple tomb marked with just one word: Franciscus.
People will be able to visit the tomb from Sunday morning, as all eyes turn to the process of choosing Francis's successor.
People visit the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, where Pope Francis will be buried on Saturday, a day before the pontiff's funeral mass
People queue for security checks to enter St Peter's Square and pay their respects to late Pope Francis this morning
A nun carries flowers past the site for the tomb of Pope Francis, inside the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major today, one day before his funeral
Believers pray at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major today, one day before the pope's funeral
Priests and security personnel gather outside St. Peter's Basilica this morning, where Pope Francis lying in state
A solemn looking woman takes to her knees and cries as she mourns Pope Francis while he lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, April 25, 2025
Cardinals from around the world have been returning to Rome for the funeral and the conclave, when a new pontiff will be elected.
In the absence of a pope, the cardinals have been meeting every day to agree the next steps, with another meeting held this morning.
They have yet to announce a date for the conclave, but it must begin no fewer than 15 days and no more than 20 days after a pope's death.
Only those under the age of 80 - currently some 135 cardinals - are eligible to vote.
Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who was number two to Francis, is the favourite, according to British bookmakers William Hill.
They put him ahead of Filipino Luis Antonio Tagle, the Metropolitan Archbishop emeritus of Manila, followed by Ghana's Cardinal Peter Turkson, and Matteo Zuppi, the Archbishop of Bologna.
Cardinal Nichols, who will be one of three UK cardinals to take part in the conclave process to elect the next pope, likely beginning in just over a week's time, has also spoken of the weight felt by those who will choose a successor.
Ahead of taking part in his first conclave, and sharing that he does not expect 'for half a second to be the one who is asked to pick up this cross' and become pope, he said he will 'try my utmost to play a good part in the process'.
A member of the security personnel stands guard as faithful queue to enter St. Peter's Basilica to pay respect as Pope Francis today
Italian Police patrol the Tiber river on Friday, April 25, 2025, ahead of Saturday's funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican
Nuns arrive in the St Peter's Square to view the body of Pope Francis laying in state inside St Peter's Basilica this morning
Members of the clergy react as Pope Francis lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica today
Umbrellas and other personal items are confiscated by the police officers from people before entering St. Peter's Basilica to pay respects to Pope Francis today
A pedestrian takes a picture with a smartphone (centre) as visitors queue to access St Peter's Basilica today
Workers build a tribune with the St Peter's Basilica of the Vatican in the background, on Via della Conciliazione street in Rome on April 25, 2025
Italian soldiers patrol the area today as part of security measures as faithful arrive at St. Peter's Square to pay their respects to Pope Francis
Egyptian Patriarch of Alexandria of the Copt Catholic Church Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak (centre) holds a cross as he arrives at The Vatican, on April 25, 2025
Nuns look on as they queue to enter the Vatican, with St Peter's Basilica in the background in Rome on April 25, 2025
Faithful arrive at St. Peter's Square, Vatican City today to pay their respects to Pope Francis
A view shows an area outside St. Peter's Basilica where Pope Francis's coffin is to be laid during his funeral ceremonies as workers today prepare for the service
Asked about having described the prospect of conclave as intimidating, he said: 'It's the weight, the consequence of the choice we make, which is, even on the world stage, is significant.'
He described being chosen as pope as 'a moment of a mini death, almost' for someone who at that point places 'themselves into the hands of the Church to be offered to God'.
On his thoughts about a future pontiff, Cardinal Nichols said: 'I think the next pope is going to have to carry on that work (by Francis) of speaking to the hearts of people about hope, about the mercy of God, about the highest calling of what it means to be a human being.'
