Pope Francis has been admitted to a hospital in Rome for a planned bowel operation.
As the Holy See announced on Sunday afternoon, the head of the Catholic Church is in the Polyclinic Agostino Gemelli.
Accordingly, it is an intervention on the large intestine.
The doctors wanted to perform the procedure on Sunday.
According to the Vatican, Francis has an intestinal disease. This causes protuberances to form in the intestinal wall, which can become inflamed. Doctors speak of diverticulitis in this case. It can sometimes cause pain or fever for the patient. It is a disease that is common in the elderly. Pope Francis is 84 years old.
The Vatican said it would release more information after treatment.
The hospital where the pontiff is operated is part of the medical and surgical faculty of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Rome.
As the media portal "Vatican News" reported, popes have been dealt with there repeatedly in the past.
According to the communication, the Pope is being treated by the head of the Abdominal Surgery Department, Sergio Alfieri.
A spokesman for the clinic did not want to provide any additional information on request.
At noon, Francis had held the usual Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square in Rome and announced two trips to Hungary and Slovakia for September.