The province of Antwerp is the latest addition to Germany's list high-risk travel destinations where there is an "increased risk" of contracting the new coronavirus.
The Flemish province is so far the only area in Belgium listed as a high-risk destination by Germany's Robert Koch Institute for public health, which discourages all unnecessary travel to the area.
Anyone who is entering Germany and who has been to a risk area within the last 14 days "may be subject to a quarantine obligation," depending on the regulations of federal states, the institute wrote.
The German Foreign Affairs Ministry said that the number of deaths and new infections had been on the rise in Antwerp since the end of July, De Standaard reports.
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"The number of new cases has exceeded the threshold of fifty infections per 100,000 inhabitants for more than seven days," the ministry said.
The province of Antwerp is two weeks into a late-night curfew, set to last at least four weeks and imposed by the provincial governor in a bid to slow down a surging rate of infections in the area.
Germany's move to add Antwerp to its list of more than 50 countries and regions considered high-risk comes after the Netherlands last week also banned all non-essential travel to the province.
According to the Robert Koch Institute, the addition of a new destination to the high-risk list is based on analysis on the incidence of deaths and new cases, the spread of an outbreak, the response from local authorities or test accessibility.
A country can also be added to the list if it is considered that there it a lack of reliable information, the institute said.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times
