Coronavirus Latest
Angela Merkel was quarantined last Sunday after her doctor tested positive for COVID-19, and has been carrying out her duties from home in the meantime. She has since tested negative for the virus on multiple occasions.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Photo: FinnishGovernment via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
Merkel praised Germans for observing social distancing measures, saying ‘everyone who follows the rules can be a life saver.’
Germany’s lockdown on public life will last until at least 20 April, with at-risk groups requiring a longer stay at home.
The Interior Ministry suggested using mobile phone data to track potential virus carriers and swiftly isolate them once social distancing measures come to an end.
Finance Minister Olaf Scholz announced on Thursday that Germany would acquire stakes in businesses to ensure their survival during the pandemic and achieve longer-term financial gains.
Aachen Cathedral is preparing a long-forgotten shrine to the Christian martyr Saint Corona for display after social distancing regulations are relaxed.
Elsewhere
Over 870 attacks on Muslims in Germany were reported in 2019, continuing a similar trend from 2017 and 2018. Ulla Jelpke ofDie Linkecalled the situation a ‘ticking time bomb’. More here (English) and here (German).
Eight arrests have been made in relation to a neo-Nazi terror cell called ‘Revolution Chemnitz’, based in Saxony, which was believed to be planning a number of violent attacks.