Tag: Germany

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Health

Third Covid wave hits Europe, France, Germany eye extra lockdowns

Third Covid wave hits Europe, France, Germany eye more lockdowns

Members of the medical staff are reviewing a patient’s information in the pulmonology department of the AP-HP Cochin hospital in Paris on March 18, 2021 as the number of people hospitalized with the Covid-19 increases in the French capital.

CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT | AFP | Getty Images

More than a year after the coronavirus outbreak was declared a pandemic, Europe continues to grapple with the virus amid a third wave of infections and an increase in lockdown measures.

At the same time, the introduction of vaccinations in the block remains sluggish, which is affected by manufacturing and delivery problems, so that the heads of state and government of the European Union meet this week to again discuss the introduction of possible export bans for vaccines.

A handful of countries are reintroducing lockdowns to contain a third wave of infections. France, Poland and Ukraine are implementing stricter measures over the weekend that should last at least several weeks.

A month-long partial lockdown was reintroduced on Saturday in Paris as well as 15 other regions of France to deal with rising case numbers, largely due to new, more contagious variants of Covid.

However, the last partial lockdown is less strict than the previous ones, leading some to question the point of such a move, while others have said the new measures are confusing. There is still a curfew and interregional travel is still effectively prohibited. Around 21 million people in France are affected by the new regulations.

The country reported over 30,000 new cases a day on Sunday, bringing the total number of infections in the country to over 4.2 million. So far, over 92,000 people have died as a result of the virus in France.

In the meantime, Europe’s largest economy, Germany, could extend a national lockdown until April as the country also battles a third wave of Covid-19 cases. Several states have reportedly called for the current restrictions to be extended as the Covid incidence rate has exceeded 100 cases per 100,000 people. A level previously announced by the government would prompt them to implement an “emergency brake” – a stalling of the lifting of lockdown measures – to prevent further spread.

The move would be a blow to Germany, which had started to simplify lockdown measures, allowing schools to reopen in February and some non-essential businesses to resume customers earlier this month.

Vaccination fights

As more and more cases of coronaviruses occur in large parts of the EU, the introduction of the vaccine remains sluggish and controversial.

EU leaders will meet virtually on Thursday to discuss whether to block vaccine exports while supplies in the region remain tight and the vaccination program lags behind that in other developed nations.

Criticized for ordering coronavirus vaccines in large quantities later than the UK and US, the EU has subsequently faced supply issues despite two of the vaccines it has approved – the recordings from Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca-University of Oxford – were used. made in the EU.

There are reports that the EU could block exports of AstraZeneca vaccine at a Dutch plant – a move that could also jeopardize the previously successful launch of vaccines in the UK. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to reach out to his European counterparts to try to break the impasse on vaccines.

The launch of the AstraZeneca-Oxford University vaccine has been fraught with several hurdles in the past few weeks. A handful of European countries have discontinued the use of the shot due to concerns about its possible association with reports of blood clots.

The World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency carried out safety reviews of the vaccine last Thursday, the latter determining it is safe, effective, and the benefits outweigh the risks.

The conclusion resulted in a reversal of the vaccine suspension in most (but not all) European countries that had discontinued its use, but the move could damage public confidence in the vaccine, which was already shaky due to misguided questions about the vaccine’s effectiveness shot in the over 65s.

Real-world data has since proven the vaccine to be highly effective in reducing severe Covid cases, hospital stays and adult deaths. The vaccine received another boost on Monday when the results of a large U.S. study were published that found the AstraZeneca vaccine was 79% effective in preventing symptomatic illness and 100% effective against serious illness and hospitalization.

However, a YouGov poll published on Monday found that the decision of some European nations to suspend use of the AstraZeneca vaccine “severely damaged the public perception of the safety of the vaccine in Europe”.

The survey, which was conducted between March 15 and 18 in seven European countries (UK, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Denmark and Sweden) found that the vaccine was more likely than not in France, Germany, Spain and the US Italy is classified as unsafe as safe. It should be noted that the survey was conducted the week that the vaccine’s safety data was questioned, and especially before the EMA published its safety decision on the shot.

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Health

Germany declares a Covid ‘third wave’ has begun; Italy set for Easter lockdown

Germany declares a Covid 'third wave' has begun; Italy set for Easter lockdown

People walk past a sign reminding them to wear the mandatory face mask in downtown Munich on March 4, 2021. (Photo by Alexander Pohl / NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Alexander Pohl NurPhoto via Getty Images

LONDON – The head of the German health department warned on Friday that a third wave of coronavirus infections had already started.

It comes at a time when the country has started to gradually relax lockdown restrictions amid government efforts to accelerate the introduction of vaccinations to as many adults as possible.

Chancellor Angela Merkel had previously warned that the country could enter a third wave of infections if restrictive public health measures were lifted too quickly.

Italy is reportedly set to impose another near-national lockdown over the Easter weekend to curb the spread of the virus.

The move, which is expected to be signed on Friday, comes just over a year after it became the first country in the world to impose nationwide lockdown measures.

What’s going on in Germany?

“We have clear signs: the third wave in Germany has already started,” Lothar Wieler, head of the Robert Koch Institute for Infectious Diseases, told reporters during a press conference on Friday.

“The virus is not going to go away, but once we have basic immunity in the population we can control it,” he added.

Wieler said he was “very concerned” about the public health crisis. He described the German vaccination campaign as a race against an ever-evolving virus, but expressed confidence that the country could ultimately bring the virus under control.

Up until this point, Wieler reiterated the importance of people wearing face masks in public and keeping a safe distance from others.

Chancellor Angela Merkel attends the 215th session of the Bundestag. Topics include the epidemic situation of national scope and the impact of the lockdown on the economy.

Kay Nietfeld | Image Alliance | Getty Images

The RKI announced on Thursday that the number of confirmed Covid cases had increased by 14,356 over a period of 24 hours, the highest daily number recorded in Germany in the last two weeks. This corresponds to an increase of 2,444 cases compared to the previous week.

The recent boom coincides with the spread of a highly infectious variant of the virus, first discovered in the UK. It was found that the variant known as B.1.1.7 accounts for over 46% of new infections nationwide.

To date, according to the Johns Hopkins University in Germany, more than 2.5 million people with 73,127 deaths have contracted Covid.

Italy faces an Easter lock

The government of Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi held talks with regional governments and local authorities from March 15 to April 6 to discuss stricter health measures, the Italian news agency ANSA reported on Friday, citing unnamed sources.

As part of these measures, Italy is expected to fight the spread of the virus by moving almost the entire country to its so-called “red zone” from April 3-5, including Easter Sunday and Easter Monday.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

Barcroft Media | Barcroft Media | Getty Images

The red zone is the maximum level of restriction in Italy’s tiered coronavirus system. Schools, non-essential shops, restaurants and bars will be closed at this level.

Sardinia, a large Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea, is currently the only region in the country’s white zone. This decision, announced on March 1, means that many measures to contain the spread of the virus in the area have been halted.

At the national level, the total number of Covid infections in Italy last week was over 3 million, mainly due to the rapid spread of variant B.1.1.7. So far, Italy has recorded 3.1 million Covid cases and 101,184 deaths.

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World News

European Courtroom Backs Germany in Case Over 2009 Killings of Afghan Civilians

European Court Backs Germany in Case Over 2009 Killings of Afghan Civilians

BERLIN – The European Court of Human Rights ruled in favor of Germany on Tuesday in a dispute with Afghan civilians who questioned the country’s investigation into an attack on oil tankers in Afghanistan in 2009 that killed up to 90 civilians.

In its ruling, the Strasbourg, France-based court found that the German investigation into the bombing did not violate the European Convention on Human Rights.

On the night of the attack, Taliban fighters hijacked two tankers carrying NATO fuel, but they were stranded on a sandbar in the Kunduz River, about four miles from the NATO base in Kunduz, Afghanistan.

Colonel Georg Klein, who was serving as the commander of the NATO base in Kunduz at the time, called US military planes to bomb the tankers. He believed that there were only insurgents in the area and feared the Taliban might use them to carry out attacks. But dozens of local Afghans had flooded the tanks after the Taliban invited them to suck up fuel. An investigation by the German army later found that up to 90 civilians had been killed.

Abdul Hanan, who lost his sons Abdul Bayan (12) and Nesarullah (8) as part of the NATO air strike ordered by Colonel Klein on September 3, 2009, brought the case to the European court after several complaints in the German judicial system.

The court found that the Federal Prosecutor’s Office decision to close an investigation into the commanding general was justified “because at the time the airstrike was ordered he was convinced that no civilians were present at the scene of the attack”.

The German Bundestag carried out a public investigation into the bombing, which was also contested in several German courts. Mr. Hanan had argued that Germany was protecting Colonel Klein and others whom he claimed were responsible for covering up the air strike.

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Health

Germany set to increase lockdown on issues over new coronavirus variants

Germany set to extend lockdown on concerns over new coronavirus variants

Chancellor Angela Merkel wears a protective face mask when leaving the country after speaking to the media at her annual summer press conference in Berlin on August 28, 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic.

Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

Chancellor Angela Merkel will announce that Germany will extend its lockdown until March 14, amid concerns about new strains of the coronavirus.

A draft document appeared early Wednesday setting out plans between Merkel and state officials to maintain the lockdown and urge citizens to maintain socially distant rules, but gradually lift some restrictions in the coming weeks.

The reopening of schools is a priority for the German leadership, although due to the federal system of the country the individual federal states can be expected to be able to decide how to do this. Stores and hotels could start reopening next month in areas where infection rates are also low. The restrictions should end on February 14th.

There are concerns in Germany about the spread of more contagious variants of the virus, particularly the mutation that was first discovered in the UK last fall. However, the daily number of new infections in Germany has fallen as public life continues to be blocked across the country.

The Robert Koch Institute, a public health institution, reported 8,072 new coronavirus cases and 813 deaths on Wednesday. This brought the total number of infections to around 2.3 million and the death toll to 62,969.

German lawmakers reportedly described the situation as “very fragile” on Wednesday.

Slow rollout of the EU

The slow introduction of coronavirus vaccines in Germany and the rest of the EU is a problem for the federal government, which is an important pillar of the bloc. The EU has been slower than the UK and US to order vaccines from major drug manufacturers and has faced supply shortages.

The longer the introduction of vaccinations, the longer the economic damage is expected from lockdowns. According to the GDP data published in January for the full year (gross domestic product), the German economy contracted by 5% in 2020.

Ludovic Subran, Allianz’s chief economist, told CNBC on Wednesday that the slow roll-out of vaccinations could seriously hurt the EU’s growth prospects in 2021.

“I’m getting a little nervous and we are only in February that we miss the boat here, that the vaccination is the best investment and we should put all our forces (efforts) there,” he told CNBC’s “Street Signs Europe”.

“Our projections show that Europe won’t return to pre-crisis (growth) levels until 2022. Then we saw the vaccination chaos and started thinking, ‘OK, we’re really jeopardizing the recovery here’ … the problem is we’re vaccinating four times here slower than the UK and US, “he said, adding,” This is really a big problem as it will make or break the 2021 GDP recovery for Europe. “

—CNBC’s Annette Weisbach contributed to this article.

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Business

Germany discovers Covid variant in Bavaria

Germany discovers Covid variant in Bavaria

There is snow in front of the entrance to the Garmisch-Partenkirchen hospital. A possibly new variant of the corona virus was discovered in the Garmisch-Partenkirchen hospital. Samples are currently being examined in the Charité hospital in Berlin, the hospital announced on Monday.

Image Alliance | Image Alliance | Getty Images

Germany is the youngest country to have discovered a new mutation in the coronavirus. A new variant was identified in a group of hospital patients in Bavaria.

Local news agencies reported for the first time on Monday that an unknown variant of the corona virus had been discovered in 35 patients in a hospital in the Bavarian ski town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in southeast Germany.

The modified virus was found in 35 of 73 newly infected people in the hospital, the Bavarian news agency BR24 reported on Monday. According to reports, samples are currently being examined at the Charité University Hospital in Berlin. CNBC reached out to the German Ministry of Health to confirm the reports.

Officials said the variant was different from recently discovered variants in the UK and South Africa.

The hospital’s deputy medical director, Clemens Stockklausner, told a press conference on Monday that there was still no understanding of whether the mutation had made the virus more transmissible (as in the variants discovered in the UK and South Africa) or more deadly.

“At the moment we have discovered a small point mutation … and it is absolutely not clear whether it will be of clinical relevance,” said Stockklausner. “We have to wait for the sequencing to be complete.”

Neither the British nor the South African variants cause more deaths, although due to their ability to spread more easily, they have caused more infections, hospitalizations and, unfortunately, more deaths. In the UK and Ireland in particular, the mutated virus has spread rapidly, causing a surge in infections and causing some hospitals to face an influx of patients.

Information about the new variant found in Germany was published on the same day that the country’s health minister, Jens Spahn, said that the current state of coronavirus sequencing in the country was insufficient and that the laboratories would be obliged (and compensated) Coronavirus samples used to monitor the virus to sequence mutations.

A handful of other countries that have detected coronavirus mutations, including the UK and South Africa, are known for their large-scale surveillance and genome sequencing of coronavirus samples.

Last week, Dr. Janosch Dahmen, doctor and German MP for the Greens, told CNBC: “We need a more precise crisis mode here in Germany to fight the pandemic, and I am very concerned that the number (of infections) will go far higher than we do can see in the UK and Ireland right now. “

Infections persist

The 16 German Prime Ministers will meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday to discuss whether the lockdown restrictions across the country, which are due to end soon, should be tightened or extended on Jan. 31.

The German infection rate is still an important problem. Another 11,369 cases per day were reported Tuesday by the health department, the Robert Koch Institute. This brings the total number of cases to just over 2 million. The death toll stands at 47,622.

Germany, like other European countries, endeavored to avoid the spread of the more infectious virus strains in Great Britain and South Africa.

Merkel reportedly told her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) lawmakers last week: “If we fail to stop this British virus, we will have ten times as many cases by Easter … W.e still need eight to ten weeks of tough measures, “reported the German daily Bild.

On Monday, Spahn insisted that the coronavirus mutation discovered in Great Britain should not be called an “English variant”.

“Just as we didn’t talk about the ‘Chinese virus’ last year, we shouldn’t talk about the ‘English version’ now,” said Spahn, reported Reuters.