Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday that he had tested positive for Covid-19, without having severe symptoms.
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“After experiencing mild symptoms, my wife and I tested positive for COVID-19. We luckily have a mild infection, which we learned was due to the Omicron variant,” the 67-year-old president tweeted.
“We continue to carry out our duties. We will continue our work from home. We hope for your prayers,” he added.
“God willing, we will get rid of this infection together with Mr. Tayyip,” his 66-year-old wife Emine Erdogan wrote on his official Twitter account.
The Turkish president received his third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine last June.
Turkey, which has a population of about 85 million, has recorded some 12 million cases of COVID-19 and nearly 90,000 coronavirus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic.
This country has required since January to isolate themselves for seven days in the event of a positive test with the possibility of breaking their quarantine if the test proves negative on the fifth day.
The daily number of new cases has increased in recent weeks in Turkey, exceeding 100,000, with authorities blaming the new Omicron variant.
Masks are widely used in Turkey, but schools and universities remain open and life goes on as normal without restrictions.
According to the latest official figures available on Saturday, 52.5 million Turks received a second dose of the vaccine. More than 25 million have also received their third dose and authorities continue to campaign for vaccination.