French President Emmanuel Macron has tested positive for COVID-19 after displaying symptoms, the presidential Elysee Palace said on Thursday.
The 42-year-old will now self-isolate for seven days in accordance with the country’s health policy, the palace said. Macron took a PCR test “as soon as the first symptoms appeared,” it added in a statement.
Macron will continue to lead France, working and carrying out his responsibilities remotely, the palace said.
French Prime Minister Jean Castex will also self-isolate after coming into contact with Macron in recent days, the head of the country’s senate Gerard Larcher said. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has suspended all public engagements and will quarantine until Dec.24 after meeting Macron earlier this week, Spanish officials confirmed.
France reported 17,615 new confirmed COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, sharply up from the 11,523 on Tuesday and 14,595 a week ago, the Ministry of Health said. The country has recorded more than 2.4 million cases in total, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, behind only the U.S., India, Brazil and Russia.
Earlier this week, Macron relaxed the national lockdown that has been in place since the beginning of November, instead introducing an overnight curfew between 8pm and 6am until at least Jan.20.
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