Pope Francis left Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Sunday after five weeks of confinement for double pneumonia.

The pontiff, who was admitted on February 5 for bronchitis, was later diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs and was reported to be in critical condition for days before his condition started improving. 

Doctors at Gemelli—the hospital that was nicknamed Vatican III by Pope John Paul I—said it would still take "a lot of time" for Francis' aging body to fully heal, and prescribed a further two months of rest at the Vatican.

Outside the hospital and at St. Peter's Square, people celebrated as Francis finally left the hospital to begin his recuperation in Vatican City.

— BM, GMA Integrated News