Pope Francis cancels visit to COP28 climate meeting in Dubai due to health issues

Pope Francis called off his visit to Dubai for the COP28 climate talks after developing flu-like symptoms, the Vatican said in a statement on Tuesday (Nov 28).

As per the Vatican, the pope is currently dealing with the effects of influenza and lung inflammation.

"Although the Holy Father's general clinical picture has improved with regard to his flu-like condition and inflammation of the respiratory tract, doctors have asked the Pope not to make the trip planned for the coming days to Dubai," Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in a statement.

"Pope Francis accepted the doctors' request with great regret and the trip is therefore cancelled," Bruni said.

However, the Vatican said that Francis still wished to contribute to the discussions and it would look into the ways this could be done remotely

The 86-year-old pontiff was scheduled to begin his three-day visit to Dubai on Friday after the Vatican earlier in a statement said that despite the health issues, the pope was going ahead with the trip.

In recent years, Francis has suffered a series of health issues. Earlier this year, he was hospitalised for pneumonia, characterised by the Vatican as bronchitis requiring intravenous antibiotic treatment. The current health concerns come amidst unusually windy and chilly weather in Rome.

He had cancelled events on Saturday (Nov 25) due to what the Vatican called "light flu symptoms".

It said a CT scan ruled out "risks of pulmonary complications".

Earlier on Tuesday, during a media briefing, Bruni had said that Francis would deliver one of the keynote speeches in Dubai on Saturday (Dec 2) and will have bilateral meetings the same day with about 30 people, including about 20 heads of state.

The pope has made protection of the environment a cornerstone of his 10-year papacy.

Francis, in a document issued in October, had appealed to climate change deniers and foot-dragging politicians to have a change of heart, stating that they could not buff over its human causes or denigrate scientific facts while the planet "may be nearing the breaking point".

(With inputs from agencies)