First COVID-19 Case Confirmed in Vatican, Residence of the Pope

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] The Vatican, where the Roman Catholic Pope resides, has reported its first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

On the 6th (local time), the Holy See announced that one COVID-19 case was confirmed within the Vatican City State. However, it did not specify whether the confirmed case was a clergyman or a general employee of the Holy See.

The Vatican City State is located within Rome, Italy, where the virus has surged sharply over the past two weeks. Italy, the country with the largest virus outbreak in Europe, has recorded a total of 3,858 confirmed cases and 148 deaths as of the 5th.

Pope Francis, who uses the 'Casa Santa Marta,' a guesthouse for visitors within the Vatican, as his residence, recently showed cold symptoms such as coughing, fever, and chills, and underwent a COVID-19 test, which reportedly came back negative.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.