TEL AVIV (dpa-AFX) – In view of the falling number of corona infections, Israel has wanted to loosen the restrictions that have been in force for almost a month. The so-called Corona Cabinet decided on a number of reliefs on Thursday evening. These should come into force on Sunday. The condition is, however, that the number of new infections every day is not significantly higher than 2000. It had previously been decided to reopen the Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv from Friday. The Israeli Ministry of Health reported new cases on Thursday in 2004.
From Sunday onwards, according to the new decision, facilities that are not open to the public will be allowed to resume their work. The requirement that citizens should not move more than a kilometer from their home is lifted.
Assembly restrictions still apply – no more than 10 people can gather inside and no more than 20 people outside. Kindergartens and preschools will also reopen from Sunday, as will nature parks and beaches. Restaurants are allowed to sell pick-up meals. The Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and the Temple Mount in Jerusalem should be accessible to visitors under certain conditions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in parliament that the lockdown was very effective. “But if we see a new increase in infections within two weeks, we will impose the restrictions again,” he said of the planned easing.
The pandemic in Israel initially went smoothly, also because of the government’s strict course. After easing and a massive increase in the number of cases over the course of the summer, a second nationwide lockdown has been in effect since September 18. The number of new infections every day has been reduced from more than 9,000 on September 30 to around 2,000. In Germany, which has about nine times as many inhabitants as Israel, the health departments reported 6,638 cases in 24 hours on Thursday.
According to official information, at least 299 502 people have been proven to be infected with the Sars-CoV-2 virus since the beginning of the Corona crisis in Israel, which has around nine million inhabitants. 2109 people have died so far in connection with a corona infection./le/DP/fba
