LONDON —
Prince Charles has been reinfected with the coronavirus
and met recently with his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, raising questions about
whether the 95-year-old monarch is at risk of contracting the virus.
اضافة اعلان
The queen is not showing symptoms of COVID-19, according to an
official at Buckingham Palace, who said the queen was being monitored closely.
The official did not say whether the queen had been tested for the virus, nor
did he offer specific details about when Charles, who tested positive Thursday,
was last in contact with her. Charles was at Windsor Castle, where the queen is
currently in residence, on Tuesday for an investiture ceremony, according to a
palace official.
Elizabeth received a dose of coronavirus vaccine in January 2021
at Windsor Castle, along with her husband, Prince Philip. The palace has not
confirmed any subsequent vaccine doses. Charles has said that he is fully
vaccinated and boosted.
In recent weeks, the queen has begun appearing again in public
after a difficult stretch last fall, when she canceled a number of public
engagements because of what Buckingham Palace officials described as
exhaustion.
Philip died in April 2021 at the age of 99, and the queen was
forced to isolate herself during his funeral service because of the pandemic. A
photographer captured a poignant image of her, grieving alone and wearing a
mask, in a choir stall at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor.
Charles, who is 73 and the heir to the throne, has gone into
self-isolation, according to his household, Clarence House. He contracted and
recovered from a mild case of the virus in March 2020, when it was first
engulfing Britain. His representatives did not immediately comment on the
severity of his infection this time.
Charles got the news that he had tested positive Thursday
morning, according to Clarence House, and postponed a trip to Winchester,
England, at the last minute. He “is deeply disappointed not to be able to
attend today’s events in Winchester and will look to reschedule his visit as
soon as possible,” Clarence House said in a statement.
Speaking to Sky News in June 2020, Charles said he “got away
with it quite lightly” the first time he contracted the virus.
“I was lucky in my case,” he said, “but I’ve had it, and I can
so understand what other people have gone through.”
Charles’ wife, Camilla, tested negative for the virus and has
continued with her schedule of public appearances, according to Clarence House.
On Wednesday evening, she and her husband attended a gala
reception at the British Museum. Other guests included three senior British
government officials: the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak; the home
secretary, Priti Patel; and the health secretary, Sajid Javid.
The queen marked the 70th anniversary of her accession to the
throne Saturday at her country estate, Sandringham. In a statement issued that
day, she said she hoped that when Charles succeeded her, Camilla would be known
as queen — a major endorsement that the couple had long sought from the
monarch.
“We are deeply conscious of the honor represented by my mother’s
wish,” Charles said in a statement. “As we have sought together to serve and
support Her Majesty and the people of our communities, my darling wife has been
my own steadfast support throughout.”
Read More Region & World
.jpg)
.jpg)
