German CDU leadership contender Merz has coronavirus

BERLIN: Friedrich Merz, one of the most likely candidates to take over the leadership of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), said on Tuesday in a tweet that he had tested positive for coronavirus.

Merz, who wants to shift the CDU to the right in a clear break from Merkel’s more liberal brand of conservatism, was confirming a report first published by the dpa news agency.

“A #Corona-test carried out on Sunday is positive,” Merz tweeted. “I will stay home in quarantine until the end of next week. Luckily I have only light to mild symptoms, all appointments have been canceled.”