Eswatini denies claims about King’s health

The government of Eswatini has denied media reports that its leader, King Mswati III, has contracted Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus.

In a statement posted to Twitter, the government said that the king “is well and in good health”, dismissing the reports as “purely fake news”. 

A spokesman for the government, Sabelo Dlamini, said “Government wishes to warn perpetrators of such misinformation that they are in breach of the Covid-19 regulations and risk prosecution”.

The country, formerly known as Swaziland, is one of the world’s last remaining absolute monarchies.

It has so far confirmed 15 cases of coronavirus, out of a population of just 1.136 million, 

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