Pope Francis returned to Rome Friday after a gruelling 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific, defying health concerns to connect with believers from the jungle of Papua New Guinea to the skyscrapers of Singapore.

The papal plane carrying the 87-year-old pontiff touched down in Rome shortly before 7:00 pm local time (17:00 GMT) -- bringing to a successful close Francis's longest trip in duration and distance since becoming head of the world's nearly 1.4 billion Roman Catholics more than 11 years ago.

The Argentine pope's epic four-nation voyage was a trip some believed foolhardy, if not impossible, for someone plagued in recent years by health issues, from knee pain and sciatica forcing him to use a wheelchair to recent bouts of flu and bronchitis.

But the successful voyage and his near-rapturous welcome in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore clearly energised the pope -- who nevertheless at times struggled to keep his eyes open during late-night liturgical readings or to appear engaged during formal military parades.

In a lively, final inter-religious meeting in Singapore, the pope........

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