ROME and LONDON -- Pope Francis "rested well" overnight, his 17th night in Rome's Gemelli Hospital, the Vatican said on Monday. "The pope rested well all night," the Holy See, the Vatican's press office, said in a brief statement.

Pope Francis remained stable through the day on Sunday and no longer required the use of mechanical ventilation to breathe, the Vatican said, in a sign of progress as the 88-year-old pontiff battles double pneumonia.