VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -Pope Francis cancelled his morning audiences on Saturday because of mild flu, the Vatican said in a statement.

The 86-year-old pontiff holds regular meetings with Vatican officials on Saturdays, including a weekly one with the head of the Vatican department that oversees the appointment of bishops, as well as private audiences.

He also had a meeting scheduled with the president of Guinea Bissau.

Earlier this month, the Pope skipped reading a prepared speech for a meeting with European rabbis as he was suffering from a cold, but he appeared to be in good health during a meeting with children just hours later.

In June, he had surgery on an abdominal hernia. He spent nine days in hospital and appears to have recovered fully from that operation.

Francis is missing part of one lung, which was removed when he was a young man in his native Argentina.

The Pope's next public appearance is scheduled for Sunday, when he is expected to address crowds in his weekly Angelus message in St. Peter's Square.

He is also scheduled to attend the COP28 climate conference in Dubai from Dec. 1-3, where he is expected to have nearly an entire day of bilateral meetings with world leaders attending the event. The conference runs from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12.

(Reporting by Angelo AmanteEditing by Mark Potter)