Pope tests negative for coronavirus, Vatican says

Pope Francis and his closest aides tested negative for the coronavirus, the Vatican reportedly said in a statement on Saturday. 

The Vatican took samples from 170 people in the complex after one resident tested positive for the coronavirus, Reuters reported, citing an official statement. 

Six of the new tests were positive, Vatican spokesman Matte Bruni said in a statement to Reuters. 

“I can confirm that neither the Holy Father nor his closest aides are among these,” he said.

Bruni reportedly said the entire papal residence has been sanitized. 

Italy is one of the hardest-hit nations, with more than 97,000 coronavirus cases and more than 10,000 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. 

The pope on Sunday also backed the U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s call for a global ceasefire amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

Pope Francis appealed for a cessation “of any form of hostilities,” and a “joint fight” against the pandemic while speaking after the midday Angelus Prayer, the Vatican said in a statement.