New North Atlantic Treaty Organization secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen dislocated his shoulder early Monday in Istanbul when he fell down the stairs at the hotel, Turkish media reported.

Rasmussen, who resigned as Denmark's prime minister Sunday after he was chosen as the next head of NATO, fell down the stairs in the middle of the night and dislocated his shoulder, reports said.

He was rushed by ambulance to Taksim Emergency Hospital, where doctors put his shoulder back in place. He returned to his hotel several hours later, the media said.

Rasmussen is now in Istanbul to take part in the second summit of the Alliance of Civilizations, an intercultural forum, Monday.

Rasmussen's appointment came after Turkey dropped its reservations to his nomination at a 60th anniversary NATO summit in Strasbourg Saturday.

Rasmussen said on Monday he would "pay close attention to religious sensibilities" in his new role as NATO chief.

His comments fell short of an outright apology over his handling of the 2006 crisis over cartoons of the prophet Mohammad in a Danish newspaper, which Turkish officials hoped he would express after Ankara lifted a threat to veto his appointment.


Agencies