VATICAN CITY (AP) 鈥 Heads of state and royalty will start converging on Rome on Friday for the funeral of Pope Francis in the Vatican鈥檚 St. Peter鈥檚 Square, but the group of poor people who will meet his casket in a small crosstown basilica are more in keeping with Francis鈥 humble persona and disdain for pomp.
U.S. President and Argentine President Javier Milei are among the leaders arriving Friday, the last day will lie in state in before his coffin is sealed in the evening in preparation for his funeral Saturday.
The said 130 delegations are confirmed, including 50 heads of state and 10 reigning sovereigns.
Paying respects
Tens of thousands of mourners have waited hours in line to bid farewell to Francis, who after suffering at the age of 88. A higher-than-expected turnout prompted the Vatican to overnight.
By Thursday evening, more than 90,000 mourners had filed past Francis' open coffin placed in front of the basilica鈥檚 main altar 鈥 at times praying, at times holding smart phones aloft for a photo of the late pontiff laid out in red robes, a bishop's pointed miter and a rosary entwined in his hands.
Emanuela Bisco took the day off work to pay her last respects to Francis, as she had 20 years ago for St. John Paul II.
Francis 鈥渨as the pope of the forgotten, who was close to the simplest people, the homeless who were not pushed away,鈥欌 Bisco said. 鈥淚 hope that the next pope will be at his level, and continue his struggles, his openness, everything that he did.鈥
Cardinals meet
The work of the won鈥檛 start until at least May 5, after nine days of public mourning.
Cardinals have been also been arriving in Rome, with 113 meeting Thursday morning to discuss church business. They will meet again Friday before taking a break for the weekend.
鈥淲e are getting ready, but we still have not entered into the more intense phase. We are in the organizational phase,'' Italian Cardinal Fernando Filoni said Thursday.
Papal burial
In keeping with Francis鈥 embrace of the marginalized, the Vatican said a group of poor and needy people will meet the pope鈥檚 coffin to pay homage to him when it arrives at St. Mary Major basilica for burial on Saturday.
The tomb is being prepared behind a wooden barrier within the basilica that he chose to be near an icon of the Madonna that he revered and often prayed before.
Photos released by the Vatican on Friday show the marble tombstone flat against the pavement, with the simple engraving in Latin that he requested in his last testament: 鈥淔ranciscus鈥
Delegations
Trump, who is traveling with first lady Melania Trump, is scheduled to arrive Friday, after Francis鈥 coffin has been sealed.
Among the other foreign dignitaries confirmed for the papal funeral are:
鈥 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and first lady Olena Zelenska
鈥 French President Emmanuel Macron
鈥 British Prime Minister Keir Starmer
鈥 Prince William
鈥 Spain鈥檚 King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia
鈥 Hungarian President Viktor Orb谩n
鈥 Brazilian President Luiz In谩cio Lula da Silva
