Canada PM Trudeau says tests positive for COVID-19

Montreal, Jan 31, 2022 (AFP) -Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday he had tested positive for COVID-19 but was not experiencing severe symptoms.

The 50-year-old leader — who is vaccinated and boosted — had announced last week he was isolating after being exposed to the coronavirus.

"This morning, I tested positive for COVID-19. I'm feeling fine — and I'll continue to work remotely this week while following public health guidelines," the premier wrote on Twitter Monday.

Trudeau, who received his third vaccine dose in January, urged Canadians to get vaccinated and boosted as the nation battles a rise in COVID cases and hospitalizations due to the Omicron variant.

The province of Ontario, where Trudeau lives in the Canadian capital Ottawa, requires people to isolate after a COVID exposure for 10 days if unvaccinated.

Ontario, Canada's most populous province, is expected to start easing COVID restrictions from Monday, allowing restaurants, bars, sports venues and movie theaters to re-open.

Canada has recorded more than 2.9 million cases of COVID-19 and more than 33,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Ottawa was hit over the weekend by mass protests led by Canadian truckers opposed to vaccine mandates for crossing the Canada-US border.

Trudeau defended the vaccination mandate last week, noting that 90 percent of drivers are already vaccinated.