The Pope's own Roman hospital has today offered to care for Charlie Gard to prevent Great Ormond Street Hospital ending his life.

The ten-month-old's defiant parents Connie Yates and Chris Gard have told supporters they are 'still fighting' to save him.

Theresa May is today facing increasing pressure to make a 'moral' intervention after the US President and the Pope gave their support as doctors prepare to turn off his life support.

The Pontiff also tweeted: 'To defend human life, above all when it is wounded by illness, is a duty of love that God entrusts to all'.

Today the Pediatric Hospital Bambino Gesu, known as the 'Pope's Hospital' and sits close to the Vatican's walls, has offered to take Charlie Gard from Great Ormond Street where he would be kept alive on a ventilator.

President of the hospital, Mariella Enoc, tweeted that the Holy Father’s own words in support of Charlie 'sum up our mission'.

She said: 'I have asked the health director to check with Great Ormond Street Hospital if there are sanitary conditions for an eventual transfer of Charlie to our hospital. We know that the case is desperate'.

Chris Gard and Connie Yates released this new picture of their son Charlie and are 'overwhelmed' after Donald Trump and the Pope offered their support

The US President tweeted: 'If we can help little Charlie Gard, as per our friends in the UK and the Pope, we would be delighted to do so'

Miss Yates responded to Mr Trump's offer of free treatment by saying they are 'still fighting' for their son

Today the Pediatric Hospital Bambino Gesu, known as the 'Pope's Hospital' sitting close to the Vatican's walls, has offered to take Charlie Gard from Great Ormond Street

Last night the ten-month-old's mother Miss Yates said on Facebook after Mr Trump's intervention: 'If he's still fighting, we're still fighting!!! Xxx'.

But critics have accused Mr Trump of offering 'false hope' to Charlie's family who face losing their son after exhausting their legal battle with Great Ormond Street, who will not accept that travelling to the US is in Charlie's best interests.

Dr Sarah Wollaston, the Tory chairman of the Commons Health Select Committee, said the US President was 'wrong' to offer the treatment and said it was a 'political decision' as he tries to dismantle Obamacare.

But Charlie's parents, who won an 11th hour reprieve for their son on Friday, still hope the Prime Minister will intevene.

In a statement their spokesman said: 'Chris and Connie are overwhelmed with emotion that President Trump and the Pope have spoken publicly of their support.

'Their kind words have given them so much comfort. They remain at Charlie's bedside and his condition remains stable.'

But they also released a new photograph of the family together as supporters around the world demanded another chance for their son.

Overnight members of the so-called 'Charlie's Army' urged Great Ormond Street to drop their case and allow him to fly to the US.

Chris Gard and Connie Yates are spending the last days of their ten-month-old son Charlie's life with him at hospital in London

And many tweeted the Prime Minister directly, including pop star Cher who said: 'If the US can save precious Charlie Gard then send him to us!'

Sarah Veaney tweeted: 'Ironic how the USA leader @realDonaldTrump gets involved but @theresa_may the U.K leader hasn't! Same old!'.

Paulina Sagan‏ wrote to Mrs May and said: 'I urge you to get involved. Not sure what to do? LISTEN TO THE WORLD! It speaks for Charlie!'

Karen Stevenson‏ tweeted her: 'Trump and Pope Francis have spoken out for Charlie Gard. Where is your voice?'

And Natalie Dent‏ said: 'Thanks @realDonaldTrump for your support - @theresa_may do the right thing and #savecharliegard'.

Mr Trump has risked a diplomatic row by declaring America's support for saving Charlie Gard.

The president's tweet, which had 4,000 retweets and 12,000 likes within 20 minutes of being posted at 3pm, comes after Pope Francis called for the parents of the baby to be allowed to 'accompany and treat their child until the end'.

The Vatican said the pope 'is following with affection and sadness the case of little Charlie Gard and expresses his closeness to his parents. For this he prays that their wish to accompany and treat their child until the end is not neglected'.

He joined the Pope in vowing to help the desperately ill baby boy as British doctors prepare to withdraw his life-support.

Mr Gard and Miss Yates are spending the last days of their son's life with him, after being given more time before treatment is withdrawn.

Campaigners have pledged their support to the Gard family (pictured) on social media using hashtags and blue heart emoticons

Charlie's supporters including Cher have called on Charlie to be allowed to fly to America - with some tweeting Mrs May directly urging her to intervene

CAN PRESIDENT TRUMP HELP CHARLIE GARD? As Donald Trump weighed in on the fight to save British baby Charlie Gard on Monday, Theresa May is facing pressure to intervene. Her spokesman said yesterday it would be 'inappropriate' to discuss the 'delicate case'. Without her support the US president would not have the authority to go over the European Court of Human Rights to try to keep the boy alive. Charlie's parents have been told by Europe's highest court that his life support must be switched off soon, a decision they have been desperately fighting to avoid. President Donald Trump has offered to help dying British baby Charlie Gard - but whether or not he can is under consideration Great Ormond Street doctors would have to change their minds about letting him travel to the US. On Monday, White House officials revealed that a doctor and hospital in the US has offered their services to the boy if his parents can get him here. While the president himself has not spoken to the family, members of the administration have and they have been aided by the UK government which has taken a hands-off public approach to the subject. DailyMail.com understands that if the boy is able to arrive in the US with his family, the treatment will be carried out free of charge. The answer to whether or not this is a reality lies in the UK. The first factor is that London's Great Ormond Street Hospital is allowed to withdraw his care (i.e. turn off the ventilator keeping him alive) when it sees fit. Following the European court's decision, the hospital's doctors said they were in no rush to do so and were giving the family more time together. If the US is to intervene, it will have to do so before those doctors turn off Charlie's ventilator. In 2014, Ashya King's parents were arrested for neglect after taking him out of hospital in the UK to seek alternative treatment abroad The second issue is that of the legal ramifications his family will face if they flout the European court's rulings. It is not abundantly clear where the jurisdiction lies with punishing Mr. and Mrs. Gard. Solicitors for the family were working with British officials and the White House on Tuesday to try to untangle find an answer to this question. The family's ordeal reignites the debate on who should have final say over a sick child's life. It was an issue which sparked global debate in 2014 when another the parents of five-year-old British boy Ashya King removed him from Southampton General Hospital against doctors' advice to seek alternative therapy to treat his brain cancer in Prague. Brett and Naghemeh King wanted Ashya to undergo proton beam therapy which was not available in the UK. The couple was arrested in Malaga, Spain, and were accused of neglect. They later had the charges dropped and were allowed to take their son the Czech Republic to receive the treatment. He is now cancer free and back at school. Three proton beam therapy centers, funded by Proton Partners International, are now under construction in the UK and will accept both private healthcare and NHS patients. Advertisement

Charlie's parents desperately wanted their son (pictured) to undergo treatment in America - Mr Trump says he can secure it of they can get to the US

The couple, from Bedfont, west London, raised £1.4million so they could take their son to get treatment in the US, but were told by three UK courts they were not allowed.

Donald Trump (pictured on Saturday in Washington) offered his support to Charlie's parents

In a final blow, the European Court of Human Rights said last month that Charlie's life support would be turned off and they could not take him to America.

Members of the White House administration have spoken to the couple and Trump offered to help them in the 'heartbreaking' situation.

But Washington sources said yesterday that the American hospital and doctor had agreed to waive their fees.

Last night, Charlie's parents Connie Yates, 31, and Chris Gard, 32, said the support of the Pope and the US President had left them 'overwhelmed with emotion'.

They are spending the final days of their son's life with him, after being given extra time to say their goodbyes.

The White House said President Trump was 'trying to be helpful', but his intervention in a tweet yesterday afternoon is a challenge to British and European judges who have ruled that Charlie – who was born 11 months ago today – must be allowed to die.

His parents' desire to take him to the US has have been blocked by the High Court, Appeal Court, Supreme Court and European Court of Human Rights, which backed Great Ormond Street doctors who say he has no hope and should be allowed to die.

Charlie is thought to be one of only 16 children in the world with mitochondrial depletion syndrome, which causes progressive muscle weakness and brain damage.

He has irreversible brain damage, his lungs cannot function without a ventilator, and he cannot see, hear, move, cry or swallow.

Yesterday President Trump ordered White House officials to make contact with Charlie's family, and tweeted: 'If we can help little #CharlieGard, as per our friends in the UK and the Pope, we would be delighted to do so.'

But his intervention was met with exasperation in some quarters of Whitehall, with No10 calling it 'a delicate case'.

The Ministry of Justice said court rulings against Charlie's parents 'were made by an independent judiciary' and there was no basis to challenge them.

Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman said: 'This is a very delicate case and it would be inappropriate to discuss it further at this stage. Our thoughts are with Charlie and his family.'

Charlie's parents said they had been denied their final wish to be able to take their son home to die and felt 'let down' after losing their legal fight

Charlie's parents (pictured together) hoped that judges in France would come to their aid after losing battles in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court in London

Yesterday, campaigners carrying a banner that said 'It's Murder' (right) gathered outside Buckingham Palace to protest against the court's decision

President Trump's tweet, which was 'liked' 40,000 times within two hours, came after Pope Francis offered his own backing.

'If Charlie dies we'll use the cash to save other children', says his bereft mother Connie Yates, 31, right, has indicated what would happen to money raised if the judge sided with Great Ormond Street. 'A few people have asked us what we'll do if we don't win the court case,' she said in a statement. 'We have thought long and hard about it and we would set up a charity for mitochondrial depletion syndrome's (there are others that are more common than Charlie's specific gene). 'We'd like to save other babies and children because these medications have been proven to work and we honestly have so much belief in them. 'We would like some of it to go to research at the specific hospital that are willing to treat Charlie and the rest will be available to help other families to get the medication that their children desperately need. 'We hope that you can all support us in making treatments available so that nobody else ever has to go through what we have.' A GoFundMe spokesman said officials would have discussions with Charlie's parents about what would happen to money raised for treatment. He said: 'We'll be speaking privately to the family in the next few days about what they want to do and how we can support them.' Advertisement

The Vatican said the Pope 'is following with affection and sadness the case of little Charlie Gard and expresses his closeness to his parents. For this he prays that their wish to accompany and treat their child until the end is not neglected'.

Last night a White House spokesman said: 'Upon learning of baby Charlie Gard's situation, President Trump has offered to help the family in this heart-breaking situation.

Charlie, who suffers from a rare genetic condition and has brain damage, is being cared for at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in London.

The little boy has been at the centre of a lengthy legal battle between his parents, who wanted him to undergo a therapy trial in the US, and specialists at the hospital who said the treatment was experimental and would not help.

On Friday a picture of the couple sleeping on either side of their son in hospital was posted on their Twitter account alongside the hashtags #jesuisCharlieGard #charliesfight #letcharliegohome.

The couple released an emotional video a day earlier saying they had been told Charlie would die on Friday.

They said they had been denied their final wish to be able to take their son home to die and felt 'let down' after losing their legal fight.

The hospital later confirmed it was 'putting plans in place for his care'.

Charlie's plight has touched many people and the family received donations totalling more than £1.3million to take him to the US for therapy.

Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia of the Vatican's Pontifical Academy for Life issued a statement saying: 'Dear Charlie, dear parents Chris Gard and Connie Yates, we are praying for you and with you.'

He also drew criticism for saying the parents' wishes should be respected, but that they must also be helped to understand the 'unique difficulty of their situation'.

Campaigners have pledged their support to the family on social media using hashtags and blue heart emoticons.

Charlie's parents, both in their 30s and from Bedfont, West London, had asked European court judges in Strasbourg, France, to consider their case.

On Sunday campaigners carrying a banner that said 'It's Murder' gathered outside Buckingham Palace to protest against the court's decision.

Other posters with pictures of Charlie said 'Where there's life, there's hope' and 'parental rights'.