Pope Francis Funeral LIVE: World Leaders Attend at Pope Francis' Last Rites in Vatican City | N18G

Pope Francis LIVE: Tens of Thousands Wait in Long Queue To See Pope's Open Casket | Vatican Media LIVE | CNBC TV18 More than 150,000 people from all over the world have viewed Pope Francis’s body as the Vatican makes the final preparations for his funeral on Saturday, an event that will be attended by 50 heads of state and 10 monarchs. Many of the funeral guests, including the US president, Donald Trump, and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, will arrive in Rome on Friday. Trump and his wife, Melania, are due to arrive on Air Force One at Fiumicino airport at 10.50pm local time. Joe Biden will also attend, a spokesperson for the former US president said on Friday. Biden met Francis on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy last June. At least 130 foreign delegations will be heading to the Italian capital, including Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the Prince of Wales. Seated in the front row at the funeral will be leaders from Francis’s home country of Argentina, with Italian leaders in the second row, and other heads of state and royals in the third. Mourners are paying their respects to Pope Francis, whose body was moved from his Vatican residence to St Peter's Basilica before his funeral on Saturday. The Pope's open coffin was carried on Wednesday morning in a solemn procession through St Peter's Square where as many as 20,000 pilgrims had gathered, Vatican media said. As the coffin crossed the square, bells tolled and crowds broke into applause - a traditional Italian sign of respect. The Pope died on Monday aged 88 following a stroke and a battle with double pneumonia, which led to him spending five weeks in hospital earlier this year. The first Latin American leader of the Catholic Church, he had held the role for 12 years. On Wednesday, red-robed cardinals and white-clad priests walked the Pope's coffin from his personal residence at the Casa Santa Marta guesthouse to the St Peter's Basilica. The procession lasted a little under 40 minutes. Swiss Guards, who are responsible for the Pope's safety, escorted his coffin to the church's altar. Crowds had been gathering since morning to pay their respects, with hundreds joining during the procession. Luis and Macarena, from Mexico, had come to Rome for their honeymoon and hoped to see the Pope, who gives a special blessing to newlyweds. Luis told the BBC seeing the Pope's final resting place would allow them to feel a connection. #popefrancis #popefrancisdeath #popefrancisfuneral #trump #vatican #cnbctv18 #livenews