Name: Covid update: Coronavirus news from around the world | DW News
Uploaded: 2021-01-24T21:45:10.000Z
Duration: 6 min 10 s
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Germany has introduced a new, tougher restrictions for travelers arriving from countries designated as high risk.

Judah Cove, in 19 border police, stepped up controls that German airports for passengers from around 30 countries designated as high risk or with high numbers of virus variants.

All travelers now need to show a negative coronavirus test taken not mawr than 48 hours before arriving in Germany.

Germany's neighbor, the Czech Republic, is on the high risk list.

The new rules will affect thousands of people across the border every day.

Toe work in Germany, big queues built up once the new regulations came into force.

If it if it goes on like this, I think I'll quit my job in Germany because I don't need this.

You can't do this all the time tests three or four times a week, waiting here for two hours.

If cross border workers are only thinking about how to get their tests, they will not be able to think about anything else.

The quality of their work will come second, uh, ocean to cross the border with the test on Monday morning, I'd have to do it before the start of working hours.

It's not a problem for May, but I understand that an employee in a factory, for example, we'll have a problem because it means they would be at least one or two hours late for work on Monday morning.

Such an approach, the Mini monee or how do you know?

Well, another country on Germany's high risk list is Portugal.

Voters There are going to the polls to elect a new president today, despite a deepening coronavirus crisis in the country.

O Rebelo de Sousa is regarded as the clear front runner for the post, which is largely ceremonial.

Election organizer's, for their part, have increased the number of polling stations and allowed for early voting tow.

Portugal is battling the worst coronavirus infection rate in the world.

That's more than double that of the UK and in the US and also seven times that of Germany's.

My correspondent John Philip Schultz joins us now from Lisbon.

Why are the numbers so high now in Portugal?

What went wrong It's apparently mainly due to the new variant off the coronavirus coming from the United Kingdom.

The Portuguese government waas quite slow in reacting to the new challenge, even though we know by now that it's more contagious and probably even more deadly than older forms off for the virus.

So this is the main reason why the infection numbers eso high here at the moment, given what we know, that it's more deadly and more infectious and the infection rate is running out of control.

Given that situation, why have the authorities deemed in person voting necessary rather than Malin?

Well, that's a question that a lot of Portuguese ask themselves.

At the moment, there are surveys showing that two thirds off all Portuguese would have preferred a different form of election or postponement of the elections.

But to be fair, there waas the chance off early voting and postal voting, and there were even volunteers going from door to door thio make sure that the most vulnerable groups can cast their ballot.

But this applies toe probably only 450,000 Portuguese, and there are a lot off legal experts that stress that the constitution doesn't really allow bigger changes or even a postponement off the procedures off the election.

So the government was in a very difficult situation here.

What is the government then doing to get this situation under control?

Well, concerning the elections, there are a lot off extra measures in place off course, the usual measures, social distancing.

Everybody has a pen on, but it doesn't share the pain with anybody else.

And, of course, a lot off sanitizers everywhere regarding the situation in the whole country.

Ah, it's basically stricter and stricter lock down measures by the day.

It started in mid January with lock down, but first schools remained open and this Waas harshly criticized The government changed its mind and also closed schools at the very last minute on on Friday.

So we're really more or less in a complete lock down here in Portugal at the moment except, of course, for the possibility.

Thio, go to the polling stations today on Election Day in Portugal.

Okay, let's take a look now at some or pandemic news from other parts of the world and Israel has expanded its covert 19 vaccination drive to include 16 to 18 year olds with parental permission.

Government says it will allow them to return to school and take exams.

Israel has the world's highest vaccination rate on hopes to reopen its economy next month.

Chief Charles Michelle has warned Kobe 19 vaccine manufacturers of possible legal consequences after they announced delays in delivering doses.

Vaccine partners by and taken fighter blamed supply chain issues, while AstraZeneca said a production glitch would have a supplies to Europe.

German health authorities have imposed a quarantine on a Berlin hospital after six employees and 14 patients tested positive for a highly infectious variant of the coronavirus.

 A spokeswoman said that Humboldt Hospital will no longer be allowed to admit new patients and expects the number of infected to rise. 