Pope visits Ukrainian children war refugees in Rome hospital

Pope Francis visits Bambino Gesu Pediatric Hospital to thank for caring for Ukrainian children, who fled the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Rome, Italy, March 19, 2022. Since the beginning of the conflict, the hospital has taken care of about 50 Ukrainian children. Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERS

ROME (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Saturday made a surprise visit to young Ukrainian war refugees being treated in a paediatric hospital in Rome.

One of the pictures released by the Vatican showed the pope talking to a girl with a fully bandaged head and what appeared to be a tube in her throat.