Applause rang out as the wooden coffin, inlaid with a large cross, was brought out of St. Peter's Basilica and into the sun-filled square by white-gloved, black-suited pallbearers.

The chief adviser is expected to return to Dhaka in the early hours on Monday

Pope Francis’s funeral will be held on Saturday, the Vatican announced, as world leaders from US President Donald Trump to Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky said they would attend to honour the Catholic leader.