Swiss president tests positive for COVID-19 as country opens

FILE PHOTO: Swiss President Ignazio Cassis and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (not pictured) meet in Geneva, Switzerland, January 21, 2022. Alex Brandon/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss President Ignazio Cassis has tested positive for COVID-19, the government said on Thursday, the day Switzerland removed almost all restrictions on public life after 23 months of curbs.

Cassis, who is also foreign minister and a medical doctor, took a PCR test on Wednesday and went into isolation on Thursday upon receiving a positive result, the government said.