Rome, 24 April

Pope Francis' doctor found the pontiff with his eyes open and breathing normally, but unresponsive when he was called to the Vatican early Monday morning, the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported Thursday.

Dr Sergio Alfieri coordinated Francis' five-week hospital treatment for double pneumonia and continued to oversee the pope's treatment after the pontiff returned to the Vatican on 23 March for two months of rest to allow a full recovery.

Alfieri was alerted at 5.30 am Monday by Francis' health care assistant, Massimiliano Strappetti,  that Francis had been stricken and needed to be taken to the hospital. The doctor told Corriere that he arrived 20 minutes later.

“I went into his room, and he had his eyes open. I noted that he did not have respiratory issues, so I tried to call him but he did not respond," Alfieri was quoted as saying. “He also did not respond to stimuli, even painful ones. In that moment I understood there was nothing more to do. He was in a coma."

Alfieri said it was too risky moving Francis back to the Gemelli hospital, where he was treated for a complex respiratory infection that nearly killed him twice. “The pope wanted to die at home, he always said it while he was at Gemelli," Alfieri said.

The pope died two hours after suffering a stroke. Cardinal Pietro Parolin arrived and said the rosary over the body, accompanied by the papal household staff, Alfieri told the Milan daily.

“I gave him a caress, as a farewell,'' the doctor said.

Vatican News has reported that the pope managed a gesture of farewell to Strappetti after falling ill, and that people with him at the time said he did not appear to suffer.

Francis will be buried Saturday in a state funeral expected to draw world leaders including US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and dozens of official delegations.