Coronavirus: Germany bans social gatherings in public

BERLIN (AA) - Germany has tightened coronavirus restrictions on Sunday with banning any social contact between more than two people in public, as COVID-19 cases in the country surged close to 24,000.

Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters in Berlin, after a video conference call with the premiers of 16 federal states, that they agreed on new restrictive measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

Merkel said in the next two weeks, authorities will not allow more than two people to gather in public, and underlined that those who go out for essential duties or shopping, should keep at least a 1.5-meter-distance from others.

Restaurants were ordered to close or serve only takeaway and delivery orders.

The announcement came as the number of coronavirus cases in Germany rose to 24,806 on Sunday evening. The death toll has reached to 93, according to statements by local health authorities.

Germany is the third-worst-affected country by the coronavirus pandemic in Europe, after Italy and Spain.

The virus, which emerged in Wuhan, China last December, has spread to at least 169 countries and regions around the globe, while the tally of confirmed cases has topped 322,000, according to data compiled by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.

The global death toll is over 13,700, causing a chain reaction as governments placing countries on lockdown to stem the spread.

Despite the rising number of cases, a vast majority of people contracting the virus suffer mild symptoms before making a recovery. So far, some 95,000 people have recovered from the disease.