Germany’s coronavirus cases pass 1M mark

BERLIN (AA) - Germany on Friday crossed the 1-million mark of coronavirus cases since the outbreak of the pandemic, health authorities said.

It became the fifth country in Western Europe to register over 1 million COVID-19 infections after Spain, France, the UK, and Italy.

Germany’s tally reached 1.06 million on Friday, as 22,806 new cases were recorded across the country in the past 24 hours, according to the country’s disease control agency.

The Robert Koch Institute also reported 426 deaths from the novel coronavirus, the highest one-day spike since the start of the pandemic. The official tally of deaths reached 15,586.

The German government announced on Wednesday that it has decided to extend “partial lockdown” measures until Dec. 20 amid continued rise in new cases.

According to the measures, bars, restaurants, hotels, cultural and leisure facilities will remain closed for at least another month.

Schools and daycares will remain open, but in regions with high number of coronavirus cases, local authorities will introduce additional measures.

Beginning from Dec. 1, social gatherings will be restricted to five participants from a maximum of two different households. Children under 14 years old will be exempt from the rule.