GERMANY- German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has been reported to have fractured her pelvic bone when she had a skiing accident during her Christmas holiday in Switzerland.

According to her spokesperson, Steffen Seibert, Mrs. Merkel will have to remain lying down as much as possible in the next three weeks and several visits will be cancelled.

She also suffered heavy bruising in the accident, in the alpine Engadine region of eastern Switzerland.

Immediately after the accident, during the Christmas holiday in December, Ms Merkel was not aware that part of her pelvis had been fractured, the spokesman said. It was a visit to her doctor on Friday that revealed the exact injury.

He did not give details about how it happened. She was skiing near the resort of St Moritz.

Ms Merkel still intends to chair a cabinet meeting on Wednesday - the first gathering of all her coalition ministers. She is now walking with the aid of crutches.