Jordan's planning minister tests positive for Covid-19

Nasser Shraideh is the second minister in 24 hours to contract the virus

Jordanian Planning Minister Nasser Shraideh wears a black mask in December 2021. Photo: AD Ports Group

Jordanian Planning Minister Nasser Shraideh said on Monday that he had contracted the coronavirus.

Mr Shraideh is the second minister in the 32-member Cabinet to announce he has Covid-19 in the past 24 hours.

Health Minister Firas Harawi said on Sunday that he tested positive for the disease.

Mr Shraideh told official media that his condition was “stable” and that he is “adhering to home-quarantine procedures”.

Coronavirus infection rates have been rising sharply in the kingdom in the past three weeks as officially recorded deaths from the pandemic exceeded 13,000.

Official data showed that 23 per cent of the 50,000 people who took PCR tests in Jordan in the past 24 hours had tested positive for the virus.

The 11,500 infections recorded on Monday were the highest number of daily cases in Jordan since Covid statistics started two years ago.

This compares with 20 per cent of 34,500 people testing positive the day before.

A fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic hit Jordan at the start of this month, spurred by the Omicron variant, heath officials say.

The government has reported more than 1.1 million infections.

With low testing rates and a young population who tend to show fewer symptoms, doctors say the true number of infections in the country of 10.7 million could be much higher.