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French President Macron tests positive for COVID-19

FILE - In this Dec.14, 2020 file photo, French President Emmanuel Macron, left, bumps elbows with OECD's Secretary General Angel Gurria, right, during a ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of the creation of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), at its headquarters in Paris. French President Emmanuel Macron has tested positive for COVID-19, the presidential Elysee Palace announced on Thursday. (Martin Bureau/ Pool photo via AP, File)

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron tested positive for COVID-19 Thursday following a week in which he met with numerous European leaders. The French and Spanish prime ministers and EU Council president were among many top officials self-isolating because they had recent contact with him.

Macron took a test “as soon as the first symptoms appeared” and will self-isolate for seven days, the presidency said in a brief statement. It did not detail what symptoms Macron experienced or any treatment he might be receiving.

The 42-year-old president “will continue to work and take care of his activities at a distance,” the statement added. His wife, Brigitte, 67, will also self-isolate but has no symptoms and tested negative on Tuesday ahead of a visit to a Paris hospital, her office said.

French government spokesman Gabriel Attal said contact tracing efforts were in progress. He said Macron started to feel symptoms overnight and that he will keep working from the Elysee presidential palace.

“The virus has been circulating in France and worldwide for several months and the presidency and government are used to working in these circumstances,” Attal said.

Macron joined a growing list of leaders who have tested positive for the virus, including U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who wished him a speedy recovery on Twitter.

France has a tradition of keeping strict medical privacy, including for top officials, and Macron once said he would release health information only when justified by the impact it could have on his presidency.

Macron has rarely been seen in public without a mask in recent months, only removing it when making a speech or at a press conference when he is at safe distance from others. For several months, masks have been required in all indoor public places in France and everywhere outdoors in big cities.

The French president has had multiple in-person meetings in recent days at home and in Brussels where he attended a European Union summit at the end of last week. The Elysee palace confirmed that a trip to Lebanon scheduled for next week is being canceled.

Some have questioned Macron’s many activities as the country is implementing strict anti-virus measures, including a lockdown since October that was only partially lifted on Tuesday and now includes a curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. All restaurants and bars, tourist sites and many other public places remain closed.

“Zero risk doesn’t exist. We are all equal in the face of this disease,” said Thomas Mesnier, a lawmaker from Macron’s party and emergency doctor by training.

“Anyone can get sick, even if you are scrupulously respecting protective measures and wearing masks” he told news broadcaster France-Info.

EU leaders met in person on Dec 10-11, for the first time since October, as the summit involved key negotiations on the EU’s long-term budget and recovery fund and climate-related policies. The media was kept away from the summit venue in Brussels.

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