Chechen leader Ramzan Kadryov declares himself ‘absolutely healthy’ following reports of hospitalization

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov announced that he is absolutely healthy, during an Instagram Live stream with the director of Grozny.tv Akhmed Dudaev.  This comes after media reports that he was hospitalized in Moscow for a suspected case of COVID-19.

“Even if I got sick, the world has millions of people infected with the coronavirus, tens of thousands have died, am I not a person? Do I not have the right to get sick? Do I not have the right to put in an IV and [build] immunity? I am an absolutely healthy person,” Kadyrov said.

Kadyrov also noted that he has been undergoing regular examinations in Grozny since the start of the pandemic, and that he celebrated the May 24th Uraza-Bayram holiday (also known as Eid al-Fitr) at home in self-isolation.

On May 21, the news outlets Baza, Interfax, and TASS reported that Kadyrov had been hospitalized in Moscow, and was suspected of having contracted the coronavirus. Baza reported that Kadyrov’s condition had improved on May 23, stating that the Chechen leader remained under medical supervision at that time.  

On May 24, Kadyrov recorded a video message in honor of the Uraza-Bayram holiday, but his voice could only be heard from off-screen. Then on May 26, Kadyrov posted photos on his Telegram channel of a meeting of the regional headquarters for combatting the coronavirus that he was attending in Grozny.