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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday the imposition of a curfew in some 40 places in the country affected by the new coronavirus, but retracted the recommendations of total confinement after pressure from religious leaders.
The measures were announced tonight after hours of consultation with officials from various areas. The Government was forced to take these new measures after a new outbreak caused more than 1,000 deaths and an exponential increase in the level of infections.
The curfew will take place as of Monday between 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. local time and it was not specified how long it will remain in effect. People will not be able to move beyond 500 meters from their homes and non-essential commerce will be closed..
The announcement comes less than two weeks before the Jewish New Year. The current outbreak has raised fears about a possible nationwide lockdown during the holiday period, which has traditionally seen an increase in internal displacement and extensive family reunions.
In July, Netanyahu, under intense pressure, appointed Dr. Ronni Gamzu, a well-known hospital director and former director of the Ministry of Health, as a nationwide “coronavirus project supervisor”.
Gamzu has suggested total confinement in the areas where the biggest outbreaks of the pandemic are recorded. These The “red” cities are concentrated in regions inhabited by ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities and Israeli Arabs.
However, ultra-Orthodox leaders have resisted confinement requests and threaten to disobey the new orders. The Orthodox parties are decisive partners in the Netanyahu-led government coalition.
In an apparent compromise, the Prime Minister indicated that these “red zones” will be subjected to a night curfew, with the closure of schools and the prohibition of public meetings, but avoided enacting total confinement.
“I know these measures are not easy, but in the current circumstances it is impossible to avoid them,” he said. “We will proceed with the adoption of responsible and necessary measures to protect public health, life and the economy.”
Last spring, several institutions praised Israel for taking the first steps to contain the new coronavirus crisis by closing the borders early and signaling that the outbreak was under control.
However, Netanyahu was criticized for ordering the reopening of the economy in May, a move seen as hasty. Since then, the appearance of new cases has reached the highest levels, with the Government being accused of responsibility for the resurgence of the disease and with the unemployment to overcome the 20% barrier.
Weekly protests demanding the resignation of Netanyahu, indicted in November 2019 for corruption, fraud and breach of trust in three cases – an unprecedented situation for an Israeli head of government in office – now include protests against his handling of the crisis. sanitary. , when the fragility of social assistance causes a significant part of the population to face serious economic difficulties.
Israel recorded around 130,000 COVID-19 cases with more than 26,000 still active. Recently some 3,000 new cases have been registered daily and it is included among the countries in the world where the per capita pollution rate is among the highest.
