Secretary of State John Kerry broke his leg in a bike accident in France, the State Department said today.
"Given the injury is near the site of his prior hip surgery, he will
return to Boston today to seek treatment at Massachusetts General
Hospital with his doctor who did the prior surgery," a State Department
spokesman said in a statement.
Kerry is stable and never lost consciousness. He is expected to make a full recovery.
He was originally expected to fly back to the United States today, but
State Department spokesman John Kirby said that after further
consultation it was decided it was "sensible" for Kerry to remain in the
hospital for observation overnight, for purely precautionary measures,
and then to fly to Boston on Monday.
The State Department says the incident happened this morning while Kerry
was bicycling near Scionzier, France. Paramedics and a physician were
on the scene with the secretary's motorcade at the time of the accident.
Kerry was transported via medical helicopter to the University Hospital of Geneva.
"Secretary Kerry is in good spirits and is grateful to the French and
Swiss authorities, doctors, and nurses who assisted him after the
accident," the department spokesman said.
The 71-year-old is an avid cyclist, spotted regularly during breaks in
the intense Iran nuclear negotiations biking around Lake Geneva
He had been scheduled to travel to Spain today to meet with King Felipe
VI, President Rajoy, and Foreign Minister Garcia-Margallo to discuss a
range of bilateral and global issues, followed by a Tuesday trip to
Paris, to lead the U.S. delegation to the Counter-ISIL Coalition Small
Group Ministerial.
"The Secretary very much regrets not being able to visit Spain to meet
with one of our close allies for discussions on a range of issues, as
well as being unable to attend the counter-ISIL coalition ministerial
meeting on Tuesday in Paris in person. The Secretary plans to
participate in the counter-ISIL coalition meeting remotely," the State
Department spokesman said.
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