Image source, EPA

Pallbearers are now lifting up the Pope's coffin to be taken in procession to the church of Santa Maria Maggiore shortly.

As a reminder, you can also follow today's coverage by pressing watch live above.

Images have now been released by Ukrainian officials of Donald Trump's brief meeting inside St Peter's with Volodymyr Zelensky.

As you can see it's very much an ad hoc meeting on chairs - and the two men look engrossed in deep conversation.

The picture comes from Andriy Yermak, head of Zelensky's office.

Image source, Andriy Yermak/Telegram

Laura Gozzi
Reporting from St Peter's Square

Image source, Getty Images

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re has just blessed the Pope's coffin with holy water, before burning incense in a thurible – a symbol of cleansing.

The bells have just rolled three times - at midday local time on the dot - after the blessing of the coffin was carried out.

There is total silence, bar the helicopter overhead.

Sarah Rainsford
Reporting from St Peter's Square

A bit earlier, a procession of priests in white made its way right to the end of the road leading to St Peter’s Square, carrying golden chalices full of wafers for communion.

The large crowd quickly moved forward to receive the hosts and then broke out again in applause as the choir finished singing.

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet for a second time later today, a Ukrainian spokesman says.

Earlier, the White House said the pair met privately inside St Peter's Basilica ahead of the funeral mass. The 15-minute meeting was described as a "very productive discussion".

We are nearing the end of the funeral mass ceremony at St Peter's Square.

In this section of the final farewell, the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, will commend the Pope's soul to God and ask for consolation for the Roman Catholic Church.

More prayers will be read and the Pope's coffin will then be sprinkled with holy water and incense.

The Prince of Wales spoke briefly to US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on his way into the service, Kensington Palace says.

William also met and spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron before the taking his seat for the funeral mass.

Image source, Getty Images

Laura Gozzi
Reporting from St Peter's Square

Communion has just been brought upstairs to the roof of the colonnade for journalists and photographers who wish to take it.

Image source, Laura Gozzi / BBC

As a sign of peace, people in the crowd are encouraged to shake hands with those near them.

Over in the dignitaries section in St Peter's Square, President Trump can be seen shaking hands with those closest to him - including French President Emmanuel Macron.

Image source, Getty Images

As we've reported, Donald Trump is on the front row of the service today - it's arranged by the (French) alphabetical order of countries, meaning the États-Unis is near Finland, France, and Estonia. Historically, French was regarded as the language of diplomacy.

Image source, Getty Images

Following on from the liturgy of the Eucharist is the communion rite.

This is where Catholics say the ritual shows the togetherness of Christians and God.

According to Catholic belief, blessing the bread turns it into the body of Christ.

You can follow the communion rite here on the order of service.

Sarah Rainsford
Reporting from St Peter's Square

The homily - or address - after the gospel was almost 20 minutes in length, and full of colour from the Pope’s life.

At times it felt quite political, especially given who is here in the crowd.

The cardinal talked of the Pope’s call to “build bridges, not walls” - and his compassion for migrants. It’s an issue he clashed with Donald Trump over in the past - even calling his expulsion of undocumented migrants “a disgrace”.

There were ripples of applause all around me here on the street as people listened: the first came when the cardinal mentioned the Pope’s first ever foreign trip - when he went to the Italian island of Lampedusa and met refugees and migrants in a display of support.

Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor

Image source, Reuters

More now on the brief meeting Ukraine's president had with Donald Trump just before Pope Francis' funeral.

The White House says the two leaders met privately and had a "very productive discussion", adding that more details would be given later.

The meeting took place inside St Peter's Basilica after they had paid their respects to the Pope, according to Italy's Rai TV, rather than at the US embassy as expected.

This is the first time they have met since that tempestuous meeting in the Oval Office at the end of February, when Zelensky was accused of not saying thank you for US aid to Ukraine.

Only this week, Trump said Zelensky had "no cards to play" in a peace deal with Russia.

Daniel Wittenberg
Reporting from Rome

Meanwhile, on the other side of Rome, people from around the world are already starting to queue at the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, where the late pontiff will be interred after today's funeral.

Several hundred have arrived, hoping to secure a spot on the square in front of the church.

New friendships are being made. Simona from Turin met Teresa from Rome while waiting outside the church.

“I wanted to be here to honour him," Simona says. “I can’t not be here."

Next on the order of service we have the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

This is the part of the ceremony where bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ. It is then shared.

Then, this will be followed by more prayers which you can follow on the order of service here.

Laura Gozzi
Reporting from St Peter's Square

There was long applause when the cardinal talked about the need to end wars.

There was no clapping - as far as I could see - from the heads of state. But they did clap when the cardinal asked the Pope to pray for us.

The homily has now ended.

The Pope was faced with the raging wars of recent years, Cardinal Re notes, and he "incessantly raised his voice" to call for peace.

"War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone," Cardinal Re says quoting the Pope.

"Build bridges, not walls" was something Pope Francis repeated many times, he adds.

Laura Gozzi
Reporting from St Peter's Square

There was big applause here in St Peter's Square when Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re said the Pope’s first trip was to Lampedusa, and that he celebrated a mass at the border between Mexico and the US.

The cardinal is now commemorating the Pope's work to serve refugees and displaced people, highlighting that his first journey as Pope was to the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, which many migrants have used as a gateway to the EU.

That visit was "significant", he says, noting that the island symbolises "the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea".

"In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico."

• Read more about that visit to Lampedusa and his work with refugees here.

The Vatican says 200,000 people are attending the Pope's funeral in St Peter's Square and the surrounding area.

Meanwhile, Italian police have updated their earlier figure, putting the number at around 150,000 - that includes around 50,000 gathered in St Peter's Square itself.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters