Norway king likely to get pacemaker next week: palace

Norway’s 87-year-old King Harald, who was flown home at the weekend after contracting an infection in Malaysia, will have a pacemaker inserted likely early next week, the palace said Wednesday.

Europe’s oldest reigning monarch, King Harald fell ill while on a holiday on the Malaysian island of Langkawi.

He was hospitalised for several days before a medical transport flight flew him home on Sunday to Oslo, where he has remained in hospital.

“His Majesty the King’s health is steadily improving, and his general condition is satisfactory,” the palace said in a health update.

“The infection is under control, and the pacemaker insertion is likely to take place early next week,” it added.

On Saturday, the king was fitted with a temporary pacemaker, which his personal physician said would make his return safer.

Harald needs crutches to get around and has suffered a series of health issues in recent years.

He caught a respiratory infection in January, days after dismissing speculation that he might abdicate, following the lead of his 83-year-old distant cousin Queen Margrethe II in Denmark.

King Harald has been monarch for 33 years, and celebrated his 87th birthday on February 21.

Crown Prince Haakon, 50, has stepped in as regent in the king’s absence.