Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron tested positive for Covid-19, his office said in statement Thursday.
Macron was tested after showing mild symptoms of the disease and will isolate for seven days and continue to work, the statement said. An official at Macron’s Elysee Palace declined to provide details on the circumstances of the infection or where the president will be isolating.
It comes at a politically sensitive time for Macron. France is struggling to tame the pandemic, with the president fielding criticism of his handling of the crisis and the economic fallout. He’s also facing protests over his plans to bolster the powers of the police and the closing stages of Brexit. After Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, he’s the third leader of a Group of Seven nation to contract the virus.
Macron was due to travel to Lebanon next week. He met with the Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa for a working lunch on Wednesday.
France has switched from a strict lockdown to a curfew this week and will be easing restrictions further for the Christmas holidays. – Bloomberg
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