Algeria president to return 'within days' from German hospital

ALGIERS — Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is to return home within days after a month of hospitalisation in Germany with coronavirus, his office said on Monday.

"The president of the republic assures the Algerian people about his health, that he is on the way to recovery and will be returning home in the coming days," it said in a statement.

The presidency said Tebboune had left the hospital and was having a "period of convalescence" as recommended by his medical team. It gave no other details.

Tebboune, who is 75 and a heavy smoker, was admitted to hospital in Germany on October 28 to undergo "in-depth medical examinations", according to the presidency.

He was transferred from a facility in the Algerian capital days after going into self-isolation following reports of novel coronavirus cases among his aides.

A day before he was transferred abroad, the presidency said Tebboune’s “state of health does not raise any concern” but a week later it announced he had contracted COVID-19.

While he was still in hospital in Germany, his office also said the president had finished his treatment and was undergoing “post-protocol medical tests”.

But updates on his medical condition have been irregular and his lengthy absence fuelled speculation and fears of a political vacuum.

Monday’s statement was the first released by his office since mid-November.