Pope and death rumour
Little more than a week into his admission to hospital for respiratory ailments, Pope Francis was lately rumoured dead. But the pontiff was not dead. The rumour mill was a product of obfuscation over his health by a habitually secretive Vatican and a restive quest for information by millions of Catholics and Vatican watchers who were concerned about the long absence of the holy father from public view. The pope was admitted to Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, the capital of Italy on 14th February after experiencing breathing difficulties. His condition later worsened, with his bronchitis developing into pneumonia in both lungs. Amidst heavy rumour traffic that he had died, the Vatican News reported last week that the 88-year-old pontiff was resting well and was even showing signs of “slight improvement” in his health condition. “No episodes of asthma-like respiratory distress occurred, and some laboratory tests have shown improvement. The monitoring of his mild kidney insu...