UPDATE: |Pope Francis’ funeral confirmed to take place on Saturday News

The pontiff passed away on Monday following a period of ill-health

The funeral of the late Pope Francis will take place on Saturday, the Holy See Press Office has confirmed.

The first Latin American pontiff died aged 88 on Easter Monday following a cerebral stroke that led to a coma and irreversible heart failure.

Details of Francis’ funeral were confirmed this morning, with mass set to take place in front of St Peter’s Basilica at 10am local time on Saturday.

The dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, will lead the service.

At the end of the funeral, Re will deliver the final commendation – a concluding prayer where the Pope will be formally entrusted to God – and the body moved to Santa Maria Maggiore for the burial.

Francis’s body is currently laid out in a coffin in the chapel of the Santa Marta residence – where he lived during his 12-year papacy.

Pictures released on Tuesday showed the Buenos Aires native lying in a wooden coffin dressed in red, with rosary beads draped across his hands.

On Wednesday morning, the coffin will be moved to St Peter’s Basilica where it will be put on display for the public to pay their respects.

Papal funerals have traditionally been elaborate affairs, but Pope Francis acted last year to simplify his arrangements.

He will be the first Pope in more than a century not to be buried in the Vatican, opting instead to be laid to rest in his favoured site of Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore – located in the Monti neighbourhood of Rome.

He also requested to be buried in a simple wooden casket, unlike his predecessors who were buried in the traditional three nesting coffins made of cypress, lead and oak.

Several world leaders are expected to attend Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump.