Top German virologist: Five days is long enough for a Covid quarantineSeptember 3, 2020 - 13:03 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Germany's top virologist thinks the standard two-week coronavirus quarantine period is far too long, Fortune reports Research shows people are no longer infectious after five days, so that should be the limit of the quarantine period, Christian Drosten, the head of virology at Berlin's Charité hospital, said in a podcast published by the broadcaster NDR. Drosten said it was important for quarantines not to turn into effective lockdowns. "It's no use having all kinds of school classes, all kinds of workplaces, under weeks-long quarantine," he said, explaining that shorter quarantines would prove more palatable to the public. Germany's answer to the U.S.'s Anthony Fauci—at least, in terms of pandemic celebrity—made the recommendation shortly before Health Minister Jens Spahn ruled out the need for another nationwide lockdown of the sort seen in the early stages of the pandemic. According to Drosten, the five-day quarantine period he is recommending should not be "wasted" on tests to confirm the COVID-19 diagnosis. Instead, he said, there should be tests after the quarantine to see whether the individual was indeed infected, and whether the person is still infectious. Like many other countries, Germany is seeing a growing movement of people protesting against coronavirus restrictions—though it should be noted that, compared to many other countries, Germany's restrictions are by this point very light. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. Aliyev says no need for mediators in Armenia-Azerbaijan process Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev believes that Baku and Yerevan do not mediators in the process of normalizing relations. Aram I supports Karekin II’s “patriotic position” Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I has expressed support for the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. |