Dynamite News
Coronavirus: Belgian Prince Joachim tests positive for COVID-19
Belgian Prince Joachim, a nephew of Belgium's King Philippe, has tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a party during the lockdown in Spain, according to local media reports cited by China's CGTN network.
Brussels: Belgian Prince Joachim, a nephew of Belgium's King Philippe, has tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a party during the lockdown in Spain, according to local media reports cited by China's CGTN network.
The reports said the party took place at a private residence and was attended by 27 people. Prince Joachim's symptoms are said to be mild.
Prince Albert II of Monaco was the first known royal to become infected with the deadly disease. The palace confirmed he had caught COVID-19 in March, just days after he announced a string of new reforms to tackle the outbreak.
As the contagion continued to spread across Europe, the British royal family also came under its grip. Prince Charles, the 71-year-old heir to the throne, tested positive for the coronavirus in March. Prince Philip was flown to Windsor to self-isolate with Queen Elizabeth during the coronavirus crisis. Thankfully, no members of the UK royal family have so far been diagnosed with the deadly disease.
In the same month, Spanish Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Parma became the first royal to pass away due to coronavirus complications. According to Fox News, the 86-year-old was a cousin of Spain's King Felipe VI. Her brother Prince Sixto Enrique de Borbon, the Duke of Aranjuez, announced on Facebook that she died after contracting COVID-19.
The next month, the New York Times reported that as many as 150 members of the Saudi royal family were sickened by the virus doctors at the elite hospital that treats Al-Saud clan members are preparing as many as 500 beds for an expected influx. King Salman, 84, has secluded himself for his safety in an island palace near the city of Jeddah on the Red Sea, while Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, his son and the 34-year-old de facto ruler, has retreated with many of his ministers to the remote site on the same coast where he has promised to build a futuristic city known as Neom.
The respiratory illness has infected over 6 million people globally and killed more than 3,67,000 others, though the true number is thought to be higher as testing is still limited and many countries haven't counted fatalities outside of hospitals. (ANI)