Pope Benedict XVI has left the Vatican
on his final day as Pope.
The 85-year-old pontiff is being flown
by helicopter to the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome.
At 19:00 GMT he will cease to be the
pontiff. His deputy, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, will be in charge of the
world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics until a new pope is elected next month.
Earlier, Benedict met his cardinals,
vowing "unconditional obedience and reverence" to his eventual
successor.
Church bells rang as the pontiff boarded
the helicopter shortly after 16:00 local time.
Before that, top officials in the Curia - the
administrative body that runs the Holy See, greeted applause rippled around the
Vatican as the Pope for the last time.
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