Pope Francis arrived at a Roman hospital for abdominal surgery. The 86-year-old pontiff will be put under general anesthesia for the procedure and will spend several days in the hospital, writes UNN with reference to AR.

 Pope Francis went to hospital on Wednesday to undergo abdominal surgery to treat an intestinal obstruction, two years after having 33 centimeters of his colon removed due to a narrowing of the large intestine.

 The Vatican said Francis, 86, will be under general anesthesia during the operation on Wednesday afternoon and will be hospitalized at Rome's Gemelli Hospital for several days. The pope is undergoing, according to the Vatican, "laparotomy and plastic surgery of the abdominal wall with prosthetics" to treat "recurrent, painful and worsening intestinal stricture."

 "The stay in the medical institution will last for several days to ensure a normal postoperative course and full functional recovery," the message reads.

 It is expected that the news will be published only after the operation. Francis remains in charge of the Vatican and the $1.3 billion Catholic Church, even while unconscious in the hospital, the publication notes.

 In July 2021, Francis spent 10 days in Gemella, where 33 centimeters of his large intestine was removed. He was suffering from what the Vatican said was severe inflammation and narrowing of the colon. In an interview with The Associated Press in January, Francis said the diverticulosis, or bulge in the intestinal wall, that caused the 2021 surgery had returned.

 After the 2021 operation, Francis said he could eat whatever he wanted, but complained he had a bad reaction to the general anesthesia used during the longer-than-expected procedure. This reaction partly explains his refusal to undergo surgery to repair sprained knee ligaments, which has left him in a wheelchair and walker for more than a year.

 The fact that he is set to return for surgery suggests he had no choice but to treat the intestinal problem, especially with a busy travel schedule ahead this summer, AR said.

 Recently, Francis has a very tight schedule, several audiences every day. The Vatican recently confirmed a busy August, when the Holy See and Italy are usually on vacation, with a four-day visit to Portugal in the first week of August and an equally long trip to Mongolia starting on August 31.