Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has died at his home in the Vatican at 95, Vatican officials announced.
“With sorrow I inform you that the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, passed away today at 9:34 in the Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican.Further information will be provided as soon as possible,” said the Director of the Holy See press office Matteo Bruni’s statement.
The Vatican press office has said that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s body will lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican for the faithful to pay their respects.
No further details have been announced.
After his surprise resignation in February 2013 at the age of 85, he was only known to have left the tiny sovereign state briefly and was rarely seen in public.
