The one millionth tourist to Israel so far this year lands at Ben Gurion Airport.
Belinda Desoyo Lee Marcelo, 53, a resident of the United Arab Emirates, was welcomed to the country by Tourism Minister Yoel Razvozov.
“At first, we thought and hoped that the President of the United States Joe Biden would be the millionth tourist to arrive in Israel in 2022, but once again, we have beaten the forecast,” says Razvozov in a statement from his ministry. “Here we are, welcoming the millionth tourist to enter Israel this year. Last year, our skies were closed, there were corona restrictions in place with new variants emerging, and serious concerns about incoming tourism. Despite the situation, we did not give up, at any stage. We worked hard to open up the industry and we brought the tourism industry back to life in spite of the challenges.”
In January, Israel reopened its borders to fully vaccinated foreigners after shutting during the Omicron variant, in March it allowed unvaccinated tourists to enter, and in May it ended all COVID testing for arriving passengers.
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From the Liveblog of
Sunday, July 10, 2022
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