New Delhi (NVI): German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the country’s 16 state governors have agreed to extend a partial shutdown well into December in an effort to further reduce the rate of COVID-19 infections ahead of the Christmas period.
Germany embarked on a 4-week ‘wave-breaker’ shutdown on November 2, closing restaurants, bars, sports and leisure facilities but leaving schools, shops and hair salons open.
Merkel said the measures will now be extended until at least December 20, with a goal of pushing the number of new coronavirus cases in each region below 50 per 1,00,000 inhabitants per week.
From December 1, private gatherings will be limited to five people. Over Christmas, that number will rise to 10, not counting children, though the decision included an appeal to avoid social contact for a week ahead of family visits.
Furthermore, financial support for businesses that have had to close under the partial lockdown will be extended into December.
However, the chancellor stressed that the limitations of social contacts would be withdrawn earlier than in January only in case of a sharp decrease in the number of new COVID-19 cases.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases increased by 18,633 to 9,61,320, daily data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Wednesday, 5,015 less than the record increase reported on Friday.
-CHK
