Pope Francis skips speech, blaming breathing difficulties after surgery

VATICAN CITY , June 24 ------ Pope Francis skipped reading a planned speech at a conference on Thursday, June 22, saying he still had breathing problems following a hernia operation this month.

“I am still under the effects of anesthesia, my breathing is not good,” Francis told a meeting of the Catholic Oriental Church, saying delegates would instead receive a text of the speech. Asked by a well-wisher how he felt, the 86-year-old Pope replied: “I’m still alive.”

The Pope had surgery on June 7 to repair an abdominal hernia. He spent nine days in hospital recovering and has had a busy schedule since returning to the Vatican last Friday, including meeting the presidents of Cuba and Brazil.

Source: rappler.com