Coronavirus cases are rising exponentially in Germany, officials warn, as continental Europe braces for a third wave of infections.
Germany’s public health body, the Robert Koch Institute, said that highly contagious virus variants could force the country back into lockdown.
France, Poland and other nations are reintroducing restrictions.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn has said that Europe lacks the vaccines needed to significantly reduce cases.
“We have to be honest about the situation – in Europe we don’t have enough vaccines to stop a third wave through vaccinations alone,” he told reporters on Friday.
What’s the situation in Germany?
The increase in reported cases in Germany is said to be fuelled by outbreaks among younger people.
Mr Spahn said a rise in the number of cases could mean that restrictions, which have only just started to be relaxed, might have to be re-imposed.
“The numbers are rising, the share of mutations is large and there are some fairly challenging weeks ahead of us,” he said.
Ministers are particularly concerned about the Easter holidays. They are urging people not to travel and to limit gatherings to immediate family.
Just 8% of Germany’s population has so far received a first dose of vaccine, although the government on Friday resumed the rollout of the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab – the campaign was paused over fears of possible side effects.
Vice president of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases, Lars Schaade, warned of the possibility of “many severe cases and deaths, and hospitals that are overwhelmed”.
The RKI has said that cases in Germany are rising at a “very clearly exponential rate”.
What’s the latest on the AstraZeneca vaccine?
Despite assurances from the European medicines regulator that the AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and effective, some countries remain reluctant to resume their campaigns using the jab.
Finland’s health authority has announced a pause in its use of the vaccine that will last at least a week.
The move, which follows two reports of blood clots in patients who had received the jab in the country, was said to be a precautionary measure.
Meanwhile, Sweden, Denmark and Norway said on Friday that they needed more time to determine whether they should resume AstraZeneca inoculations.
Germany, Italy, France, Spain and the Netherlands are among the countries that have restarted their AstraZeneca vaccination campaigns.
Health authorities in France have recommended that the vaccine be offered only to people aged 55 and over.
The French capital, Paris, is set to go into a month-long Covid lockdown as the country fears a third wave. Some 21 million people in 16 areas of France will be placed under the measures from midnight on Friday.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) reviewed the jab after 13 European countries suspended use of the vaccine over fears of a link to blood clots.
It found the jab was “not associated” with a higher risk of clots.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged countries to continue using the AstraZeneca vaccine.
On Friday, experts at the WHO said the vaccine had “tremendous potential to prevent infections and reduce deaths across the world”.
“The available data do not suggest any overall increase in clotting conditions such as deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism following administration of Covid-19 vaccines,” the WHO’s Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety said in a statement.