A right-wing Florida pastor was hospitalized with Covid-19, weeks after saying vaccination efforts were part of a "mass death campaign."
The pastor, Rick Wiles, wrote Tuesday on TruNews.com, where he propagates homophobic, racist and other hateful conspiracy theories, that he had Covid-19-related pneumonia and difficulty breathing. He said that he was being released from the hospital later that day but that his wife was "still very fatigued."
He added that his daughter-in-law was in the hospital with extreme dehydration and vomiting and that at least four other family members, including his grandson, had developed Covid-19-related symptoms. At least three TruNews team members were also recovering from the virus, he wrote.
"This was a full-frontal hit from Hell on your TruNews family," Wiles wrote. "Because Jesus Christ lives in us, we shall live too. Your prayers needed for the above family members and team.
"Thanks to Jesus Christ, I survived the CCP Covid genocide on the American people," he added, apparently referring to the Chinese Communist Party.
About a month ago, Wiles said he was "not going to be vaccinated."
"I'm going to be one of the survivors. I'm going to survive the genocide," he said in an interview posted to TruNews. "I am not going to allow the Covid maniacs to convince me to be vaccinated or vaccinate me against my will."
"I know what I'm reading. I know what I'm seeing," Wiles said, adding that "there is a mass death campaign underway right now" and that "the only good thing that will come out of this is that a lot of stupid people will be killed off."
Wiles is the pastor of Flowing Streams Church, a nondenominational congregation in Vero Beach, Florida.
In January 2020, he said Covid-19 was God's way of punishing China for having a "godless communist government."
He warned that God's judgment would come down on America because of "the spiritual rebellion that is in this country," including "transgendering little children."
