Germany extends COVID-19 measures until mid-February

BERLIN: German federal and state governments agreed on Tuesday evening to extend the current COVID-19 measures until at least February 14.

Most shops and schools will remain closed and people will continue to be asked to limit their contacts and stay at home as much as possible for the next few weeks.

The governments also agreed to impose stricter mask rules for people travelling on public transport. Medical masks, namely surgical masks or KN95/N95, FFP2 masks will be required for those on public transport and in shops for better protection.

In addition, the German government has also introduced a temporary ordinance requiring employers to allow employees to work from home when conditions permit.

Germany's disease control agency Robert Koch Institute reported on Tuesday 11,369 new infections in the past 24 hours, raising the country's total confirmed cases to 2,052,028. The number of coronavirus-linked fatalities rose by 989 to 47,622.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in many European countries with the already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 237 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 64 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, Russia, Britain and the United States, according to information released by the World Health Organization on January 15.