The King and Queen of Thailand have been diagnosed with COVID-19 just days after the King’s eldest child was hospitalised with a heart problem.
King Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida have mild symptoms, according to the Royal Household Bureau. Doctors have prescribed medications and told them to rest and not attend any functions.
The pair had both visited the King’s eldest child, Princess Bajrakitiyabha, at Bangkok’s King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital as recently as Friday, 16 December, where she is undergoing treatment.
The Princess has been in the hospital due to a heart problem, according to the Royal Household Bureau.
Princess Bajrakitiyabha, 44, was training her dogs for an upcoming event organised by the Royal Thai Army in the Pak Chong district of Nakhon Ratchasima when she collapsed. She was initially taken to a local hospital for treatment but then transferred to Bangkok by helicopter for further treatment.
Despite the announcement from the palace, rumours have been rife on social media of a heart attack for the 44-year-old royal, saying that she is in much worse condition than the palace is stating. Journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall, an expert on the Thai Royal Family, was the first to report the news.
The media is tightly controlled in Thailand, and any reporting on the monarchy that could be deemed as an insult or defamation can land a person in jail for lese-majesty.
