Jordan's prime minister tests positive for coronavirus while in Cairo

Bisher Al Khasawneh's test result came in before he was due to meet Egyptian President El Sisi

Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Al Khasawneh, right. AFP

Jordan’s Prime Minister, Bisher Al Khasawneh, on Monday tested positive for the coronavirus while on an official visit to Egypt, the government’s spokesman said.

One third of the country's 32-member Cabinet have tested positive for Covid-19 this month as infections rose sharply in the kingdom of 10.7 million people.

Government spokesman Faisal Shboul said a meeting between Mr Al Khasawneh and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi that was scheduled for Monday was cancelled after the test results came in.

Mr Shboul said Mr Al Khasawneh would enter quarantine "on his return” to Jordan.

All significant powers in Jordan are with King Abdullah II, while the prime minister’s role is limited to daily running of the government.

The number of people recorded as infected with the coronavirus in Jordan rose 40 per cent to 1.6 million since late November, when the government said the kingdom entered a third wave of the pandemic.

Deaths registered as caused by the pandemic rose 20 per cent to 13,731 people over the same period.