Japan's Iwaya, Others Attend Funeral of Pope Francis

   Vatican City, April 26 (Jiji Press)--The funeral of Pope Francis, who died at the age of 88, was held at the Vatican on Saturday, attended by many foreign dignitaries, including Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.
   The Argentine native became the first leader of the Catholic Church from Latin America in 2013. During his 12-year papacy, the pope worked hard on church reform.
   In 2019, he visited the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were devastated by U.S. atomic bombings in the final days of World War II, and urged the world to abolish nuclear weapons.
   After being admitted to hospital for severe pneumonia earlier this year, he died at his home at the Vatican on Monday from a stroke and heart failure.
   About 250,000 people paid their final respects in the three days until Friday when the pope's body lay in state at St Peter's Basilica.

(2025/04/26-22:05)