Berlin – The mask requirement, which still applies in German long-distance rail transport due to the coronavirus pandemic, will be suspended on February 2nd. The German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) announced this in Berlin on Friday and justified the step by saying that the situation in the pandemic had stabilized. Wastewater monitoring shows values that remain the same or fall, and the number of hospitalizations is declining. “The situation is tense, but manageable there,” said the minister, referring to the hospitals.