US President Joe Biden on Thursday tested positive for Covid-19, joining a growing list of world leaders who have been infected since the pandemic's onset in early 2020.
Mr Biden is the second US president to have caught Covid-19, after his predecessor Donald Trump was infected before the 2020 election.
Mr Trump caught Covid before vaccines were available and ended up in hospital for three days.
Mr Biden is fully vaccinated with the Pfizer inoculation, has had two booster shots and is now taking the antiviral drug Paxlovid, which can further shorten the disease's course and reduce the risk of hospital admission.
In the Americas, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has experienced Covid-19 twice in the pandemic.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro also caught the virus.
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune travelled to Germany for hospital care in late 2020 after testing positive.
In Britain, Queen Elizabeth II experienced Covid-19 in February this year and Prime Minister Boris Johnson had Covid-19 in April 2020. He received hospital care at the time.
Elsewhere in Europe, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi have had Covid-19.
Former US secretary of state Colin Powell died in October 2021 after experiencing complications from a Covid-19 infection.
