Pope Francis dies latest: Funeral details to be announced – plus live updates on new Pope

Italian media are reporting the funeral of Pope Francis is likely to take place on Saturday.

According to the apostolic constitution, rules issued by the Pope for matters of great importance to the Catholic Church,the funeral is expected to take place four to six days after a death.

That would mean the service is expected on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Multiple Italian news outlets are today reporting Saturday is the most likeliest day.

Cardinals are expected to arrange the funeral date this morning.

Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky pictured in Paris last month

World leaders Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky have become the latest to declare they will attend the funeral of Pope Francis.

Mr Macron, the French premier, told reporters: ‘We will attend the pope’s funeral as we should’, while a source at the Ukrainian presidency said Mr Zelensky is preparing to travel to Rome.

The source told the AFP news agency:

The office of the president is awaiting the date of the Pope’s burial and preparing the president’s visit to Rome to bid farewell to the pontiff.

Cardinals were scheduled to meet at 9am local time (8am UK time) at the Vatican to begin scheduling Pope Francis’ funeral and burial.

They will also plan the conclave to elect his successor and make other decisions about running the Catholic Church as world leaders and the ordinary faithful grieve the pontiff’s death.

Most immediately, they will determine when his body can be moved into St. Peter’s Basilica for public viewing.

Francis died Monday at age 88 after suffering a stroke that put him in a coma and led his heart to fail.

He had been recovering in his apartment after being hospitalised for five weeks with pneumonia.

He made his last public appearance Sunday, delivering an Easter blessing and making what would be his final greeting to followers from his popemobile, looping around St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has published photographs of Pope Francis in his open coffin, dressed in a red robe with the papal mitre on his head and a rosary in his hand.

The images were taken in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta, Francis’s residence at the Vatican where he died Monday, age 88.

The body of Pope Francis has been laid out in open coffin at the Vatican for the Confirmation of the Death of the Pontiff ceremony.

The rite confirming Francis’ death and the placement of his body in the coffin took place last night at the Chapel of Santa Marta, the Vatican has said.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, read the official declaration of death aloud in a ceremony lasting just under an hour.

Seals were also placed on the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace and on the apartment in Chapel of Santa Marta, where Francis had resided.

Cardinals are set to meet today to plan a funeral for Pope Francis, as tributes continue to pour in following his death.

The world will be watching Vatican City after the death of the 88-year-old pontiff on Easter Monday.

Pope Francis died after a cerebral stroke that led to a coma and irreversible heart failure, the Vatican said.

Tributes poured in from around the world on Monday, including from the King and other world leaders, with many praising the Pope for his advocacy for the marginalised.

Read our top story on MailOnline:

Good morning and welcome back to MailOnline’s live coverage of the death of Pope Francis.

This morning, cardinals will gather in the Vatican to make arrangements for the funeral which would usually take place between four and six days following the Pope’s death.

US President Donald Trump said on social media he and his wife Melania plan to attend the funeral.

It comes after tributes to Francis poured in from across the world on Monday after his death was announced in the morning.

We will continue to report the latest news and reaction throughout the day.