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Germany will extend its current Covid-19 restrictions until early January unless there is a dramatic drop in infections, something that is not expected, according to Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Merkel said measures introduced in early November, including limits on private gatherings and the closure of restaurants, leisure and cultural facilities, cannot be lifted given current infection rates.
The restrictions will continue “until December 20 first, but we assume that … due to the very high incidence of infection, the restrictions will have to apply until early January,” Merkel said.
The deal means continued closures of restaurants, bars, sports facilities and cultural venues in Europe’s largest economy, although schools and shops will remain open.
Starting Dec. 1, private gatherings will be limited to five people from two households, up from 10 people today, though children are exempt from the new rule.
For the holiday period from December 23 through New Years Day, the meeting rules will be relaxed slightly to allow up to 10 adults to meet, with the exception of children under 14 years of age.
But this does not mean that parties will be allowed, according to an agreement reached by the Merkel government and the 16 states of Germany; rather, the motto for the period will be to stay home.
“Employers are urgently requested to verify whether company vacation or home work solutions can be applied from Dec 23 to Jan 1 to allow for company closings, so that nationally we can implement the basic principle ‘we stay at home’ “, according to the agreement.
Other agreed measures include expanding the seating capacity of trains, in order to better ensure distance between passengers.
Fireworks will be banned in certain public squares to prevent people from gathering in large groups on New Years Eve in particular.
Germany will also seek an agreement with European partners to close the ski slopes until the beginning of January, to prevent the virus from spreading further.
“I will say openly that it will not be easy, but we will try,” Merkel said.
The measures were agreed after more than seven hours of tense talks, with some less affected regions calling for lighter restrictions.
The number of new infections in Germany has stagnated in the past two weeks, and the exponential growth in October came to a halt.
However, health officials have raised the alarm about the rapid filling of intensive care units and the inability to trace the source of transmission while rates remain high.
To ease restrictions, the infection rate should drop to fewer than 50 new cases per 100,000 people per week, Merkel said, a far cry from the current seven-day incidence of nearly 140.
“The steep climb curve has turned flat, but this is only a partial success. We cannot be satisfied in any way,” he said.
Germany has recorded a total of 961,320 coronavirus cases and 14,771 deaths, according to the Robert Koch Institute’s disease control center.
Wednesday saw 18,633 new cases and a record 410 deaths.
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