FM Qureshi shifted to Rawalpindi military hospital with Covid-19

ISLAMABAD – Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been shifted to a military hospital in Rawalpindi on Saturday a day after he tested positive for coronavirus.

Local media reports say he has been moved to Combined Military Hospital (CMH).

On Friday, the minister had revealed about contacting the infection on Twitter, saying he had self-isolated himself at house.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi tests positive for coronavirus

“This afternoon I felt a slight fever and immediately quarantined myself at home. I have now tested positive for COVID-19,” the foreign minister had said in a Twitter post.

“By the grace of Allah, I feel strong and energetic. I will continue to carry on my duties from home. Please keep me in your prayers,” Qureshi added.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Saturday wished the foreign minister “a quick recovery” from the disease that has infected over 200,000 people across Pakistan.

Please stay safe. I wish you a quick recovery.

— Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 (@zlj517) July 4, 2020

The number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan rose to a total of 227,205, according to government data until Saturday night.

The death toll related to COVID-19 has reached 4,680, according to the National Command and Control Centre, while at least 127,375 patients have fully recovered.

Punjab has reported the highest number of deaths, a total of 1,844, while Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa follow with 1,501 and 1,020 fatalities respectively. Balochistan has recorded 122 fatalities; Islamabad, 130 deaths; Gilgit Baltistan, 29; and Azad Kashmir, 34.

The first two fatalities from COVID-19, as the illness is officially known, were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on March 18 (Wednesday).