The President of Algeria, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, 74, was transferred on the evening of Wednesday (October 28) to Germany for "in-depth medical examinations on the recommendation of the medical staff," the presidency said in a statement.

The day before, the presidency had stated that Abdelmadjid Tebboune, a heavy smoker, had been admitted to a specialized care unit at the central army hospital in Algiers, but that his state of health did not inspire "any concern".

She did not specify the exact causes of her hospitalization in Algiers or those of her transfer to Germany.

But on Saturday she let it be known that Abdelmadjid Tebboune had been "voluntarily" in isolation for five days after the possible contamination by the new coronavirus of several senior officials of the presidency and the government.

This hospitalization comes four days before a referendum on the revision of the Constitution presented by the Algerian President to found a "new Republic".

Recrudescence of contaminations

Abdelmadjid Tebboune was supposed to inaugurate Wednesday evening the prayer hall of the great mosque of Algiers, the third largest in the world, on the eve of the Mawlid feast, the birth of the prophet of Islam Muhammad.

It was Prime Minister Abdelmadjid Djerad who inaugurated it in his place. 

After several weeks of slow decline, Algeria, whose borders remain closed, has experienced an upsurge in Covid-19 contaminations for two weeks.

More than 57,000 cases have been officially recorded in this country of 44 million inhabitants since February, including more than 1,940 deaths.

Abdelaziz Djerad deplored Sunday the "relaxation" of the population in compliance with preventive measures against the pandemic.

Abdelmadjid Tebboune was elected on December 12, 2019 with 58.13% of the votes in the 1st round, a ballot which saw the lowest participation of all pluralist presidential elections in Algeria: 39.38%.

He succeeded Abdelaziz Bouteflika, chased in April 2019 by an unprecedented peaceful popular protest movement that shook Algeria for more than a year before his suspension several months ago due to the new coronavirus. 

With AFP

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