Under anti-virus measures, the Vatican has been forced to close churches in Rome. — AFP
Under anti-virus measures, the Vatican has been forced to close churches in Rome. — AFP

Some of Rome's Catholic churches reopened on Friday after Pope Francis voiced displeasure with the Italian authorities' push to shut them because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The rare standoff between the 83-year-old pontiff and Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's government came as Italy's death toll reached 1,266.

"Drastic measures are not always good," the Argentine-born pope said in livestreamed Friday morning prayer.

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