Germany's Merkel banks on Easter circuit-breaker to combat 'new pandemic'

FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Angela Merkel addresses the media during a news conference, amidst the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany March 19, 2021. Michael Sohn/Pool via REUTERS

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany is extending its lockdown until April 18 and calling on citizens to stay at home for five days over the Easter holidays to try to break a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chancellor Angela Merkel said early on Tuesday.

In talks that ran deep into the night, Merkel pushed the leaders of Germany's 16 states to take a tougher stance to fight the pandemic, reversing plans for a gradual re-opening of the economy agreed earlier this month after a sharp rise in the infection rate.