Pope Francis has increased his level of physical therapy and remains in stable condition, the Vatican said on Wednesday night.

Pope Francis skips this year’s services as he remains in hospital - Pope Francis is unable to take part in Ash Wednesday celebrations this year

The Vatican has announced that Pope Francis couldn't celebrate Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent outside the hospital.

On Ash Wednesday, observant Catholics receive a sign of the cross in ashes on their foreheads, a gesture that underscores human mortality. It is an obligatory day of fasting and abstinence for Catholics that signals the start of Christianity’s most penitent season.

Pope Francis, battling double pneumonia in hospital for almost a month, remains stable and a recent X-ray confirmed improvements in his condition that had been seen in previous days, the Vatican said on Wednesday.

A chest X-ray has confirmed improvements in Pope Francis' condition in his fourth week in the hospital for treatment of double pneumonia.