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Swiss minister cancels South Korea visit due to bone break

portrait photo of swiss defence minister viola amherd
Amherd: ordered to rest up for at least a fortnight. Keystone / Christian Merz

Defence Minister Viola Amherd slipped while hiking last week and broke a bone in her elbow, her department said on Tuesday.

While Amherd can continue working, doctor’s orders are to rest until August 10, the Defence Ministry said.

This means the minister will be able to celebrate Swiss National Day on August 1 in Lucerne as planned, but will not travel to Seoul soon after.

+ From 2018: Switzerland gets first female Defence Minister

Amherd was hiking in the southern canton of Valais – her home region – last Wednesday when she slipped on loose stones and fell, fracturing the radial head in her elbow.

The radial head is located at the upper end of the radius, one of the two bones of the forearm.

In a survey of some 25,000 people published on Monday, Amherd emerged as the most highly-regarded minister in the seven-member Swiss government.

A member of the Centre Party, she joined the government in January 2019.

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