Pope Francis, still recovering from double pneumonia, did not attend an annual procession on Friday at Rome's Colosseum with thousands of Catholic faithful for the third year in a row.

Although the pontiff has begun meeting with more people, he remains frail and will not lead important Easter events, the Vatican announced.

Pope Francis visited Rome's central prison Thursday and met with dozens of inmates as he kept an Easter season appointment to spend Holy Thursday among the least fortunate, even as he continues recovering from a life-threatening bout of pneumonia.