Pope Francis on Wednesday left the Rome hospital where the 84-year-old pontiff underwent an operation on his colon on July 4, an AFP photographer said.

The pontiff left the Gemelli University Hospital for the Vatican in a car with darkened windows, the photographer said.

Francis had been admitted after suffering from a type of diverticulitis, an inflammation of pockets that develop in the lining of the intestine.

The Vatican initially said he would be in hospital for about a week, and the pope led the Angelus prayer from his hospital window on Sunday.

On Monday, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said he would stay for a “few more days”.

Francis stayed in the same suite used by Pope John Paul II, who also lead the Angelus prayer from there.

The Argentine pontiff temporarily ran a fever last week but a chest and abdomen scan and other tests revealed no particular abnormalities.