Delta strain Covid-19 case numbers double in Germany in a week

Public health agency says variant is likely to overtake other strains

A man sits in the subway wearing an FFP2 mask in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. AP

The percentage of Covid-19 infections from the Delta variant of coronavirus doubled in Germany in a week, the Robert Koch Institute public health agency said on Wednesday.

The agency said the more easily transmitted Delta strain was likely to become responsible for a greater percentage of Covid-19 cases in the country.

A genome sequencing analysis shows the variant, which was first identified in India, accounted for 15 per cent of infections and is continuing to increase.

The agency said it can be expected that Delta will become the dominant coronavirus strain in Germany.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said earlier on Wednesday that she would like other European countries to require people entering from countries where there are high levels of the Delta variant, such as Britain, to go into quarantine.