Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Saturday, Aug 02, 2025

Coronavirus spreads after Covid-sceptic bishop's funeral in Montenegro

Coronavirus spreads after Covid-sceptic bishop's funeral in Montenegro

Serbia's leading religious figure has contracted coronavirus, days after attending a large public funeral for a senior bishop who died of Covid-19.

Patriarch Irinej, the 90-year-old head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, was admitted to hospital on Wednesday.

He led the funeral of the church's most senior cleric in Montenegro, 82-year-old Amfilohije Radovic, on Sunday.

Mourners gathered at the event without masks and many kissed the bishop's body as it lay in an open coffin.

This was despite a major spike in coronavirus cases in both Serbia and Montenegro, and a warning from the authorities that the event posed a risk to public health.

Amfilohije, who died on Friday, described pilgrimages as "God's vaccine" and avoided wearing a mask.

As well as Patriarch Irinej, several other people who attended the funeral are believed to have contracted Covid-19. Amfilohije's successor, meanwhile, was said to be suffering with "mild pneumonia".

Montenegro's Prime Minister-designate Zdravko Krivokapic and Serbia's president also attended the event in Podgorica, Montenegro.

"His Holiness is hospitalised in a Covid-19 hospital in Belgrade," Patriach Irinej's office said in a statement. "[He remains] without symptoms and is in excellent health."

A powerful institution


The Serbian Orthodox Church is a powerful institution in both Serbia and Montenegro. And its leaders can be important allies for politicians - or dangerous adversaries.

Montenegro's long-serving president, Milo Djukanovic, discovered this the hard way by promoting a law allowing the state to claim Church property.

That prompted Metropolitan Bishop Amfilohije, who died on Friday, to lead protests and give his blessing to the opposition parties which defeated the president's party in August's parliamentary vote.

The bishop was also highly involved in post-poll coalition negotiations. Prime Minister-designate Zdravko Krivokapic was a prominent, unmasked mourner at his funeral.

Serbia's president, Aleksandar Vucic, also attended - but kept his mask on. He faces a constant challenge balancing the Church's uncompromising stance on Kosovo's status with his goal of steering Serbia towards EU membership.

What else is happening in Europe?


European countries are responding to a second wave of infections, and many are seeing spikes in cases and hospital admissions.

*  Greece announced a second lockdown would come into effect from Saturday and would remain in place for three weeks. It comes after a new daily infection record of 2,646 confirmed cases was reported on Wednesday. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said "it was a difficult decision" but "measures must be taken... to overcome this second wave"

*  Greeks will only be able to leave their homes if they make an official request via a text message and then receive authorisation. But unlike the first lockdown, primary schools will stay open under the measures

*  In Italy, four regions will face the strictest form of lockdown from Friday. The country has a three-colour lockdown system and Lombardy, Piedmont, Val D'Aosta and Calabria have been declared "red zones" meaning people can only leave home for essential reasons

*  In England, a new four-week lockdown has begun. People have been told to stay at home and non-essential shops, pubs and gyms have been ordered to close

*  Elsewhere, Sweden's Prime Minister Stefan Löfven is self-isolating after someone in his circle came into contact with a person infected with Covid-19

*  And in Russia, Moscow's mayor said the city's coronavirus situation was getting worse. Infections have been climbing in the country at a sharp rate in recent weeks

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
×