Army announces 9-day closure of West Bank, Gaza for Passover holiday

Checkpoints, crossings to remain shuttered from Friday morning until next Saturday, except for humanitarian and other special cases

Illustrative: Border Police officers at a West Bank checkpoint, January 2017 (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)
Illustrative: Border Police officers at a West Bank checkpoint, January 2017 (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

The Israeli army on Thursday announced it would impose a nine-day closure on the West Bank and Gaza for the entirety of Passover, as is standard practice during festivals and holidays.

The closure will begin overnight Thursday-Friday, starting at 12 a.m., and last until 12 a.m. Saturday, April 27.

Exceptions will be made for humanitarian and other outstanding cases, but will require the approval of the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories.

Passover begins on Friday evening and ends next Friday night.

The closure will affect the tens of thousands of Palestinians who legally work in Israel every day, most of them in construction and maintenance.

Israeli citizens will still be permitted to move between the West Bank and Israel.

Closures for Jewish and Israeli holidays are a routine procedure, intended both to prevent terror attack attempts in Israel during the holiday period and to allow Israeli security officials, who operate the crossings, to celebrate the festival.

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