While over 40 officers of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) have tested positive for Covid-19, authorities have said that they “do not belong to the same cluster”.

Chief of Defence Force, Major General Abdulla Shamaal revealed that over 40 army officers are currently under treatment after contracting the virus, on Tuesday. He highlighted that a number of officers are working on the frontlines of the Covid-19 response efforts, and stressed that the institution has been the most affected due to the ongoing pandemic.

At Tuesday night’s press briefing at the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC), Dr. Ibrahim Afzal revealed that these officers do not belong to the cluster. He added that their contact tracing is still underway.

At the special interview to media on Tuesday afternoon, the defense chief stressed that its officers will not hesitate in fulfilling their responsibilities to ensure the safety of the people.

Isolation and quarantine areas have been established at the MNDF headquarters.

While the first Maldivian reported to have positive for Covid-19 is an MNDF officer that returned from the United Kingdom, he has since joined the force in the Covid-19 response effort following recovery.