Models wear neon-lit costumes during a demonstration by performance-theatre company Dulce Compania, as theatres and cinemas reopen for outdoor shows after the coronavirus disease lockdown in Berlin, Germany.

Germany's public health agency lowered the coronavirus risk level to "high" from "very high" on Tuesday for the first time this year, reflecting a fall in the number of new infections, although the government stressed that the pandemic was not over, Reuters reported.

Its nationwide emergency brake was applied in late April after the government passed a disputed new law designed to stem the spread of Covid-19.

The uniform measures imposed by the "emergency brake" included night-time curfews, school closures, contact restrictions and curbs on sports, leisure and trade.

Theatres, concert halls, music clubs, cinemas (except drive-in cinemas), museums and memorials were closed, and related events were also prohibited.

Berlin began reopening on May 19 and more regulations will be relaxed from today.

With the restrictions lifted, outdoor events in Berlin with up to 500 participants will be allowed, while indoor events can permit 100 people.

Testing will be generally compulsory with groups above 250 people outdoors and, for indoor events, compulsory testing will be in place for groups of 11 people or more.

A faster vaccination roll-out, wider testing and the introduction of nationwide restrictions helped break a third wave of infections.

The seven-day incidence rate monitored by Germany's disease fighting agency, the Robert Koch Institute, fell to 35.2 per 100,000 people, less than a quarter the rate of around six weeks ago.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany rose by 1,785 to 3,682,911, data showed on Tuesday.

The reported death toll rose by 153, bringing the total to 88,595.

Send us your Big Picture

Do you have a Big Picture to share with us? The image should be a recent one, with minimal digital enhancement. Send it to stimage@sph.com.sg with the title BIGPIC followed by a description of your photo. Images should be in jpg format and no more than 2MB in size.