Bennett: Travel restrictions ‘likely’ to be eased in coming week

2 January 2022, 8:55 pm

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An arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport, on November 28, 2021, heads to a mandatory COVID test. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Bennett says travel restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus will soon likely be lifted.

“I closed the skies five weeks ago when everything was fine, and in the coming week, it is likely that we will reopen the skies,” he says during a press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office.

He acknowledges that such a move may seem counterintuitive, but explains that when there are fewer active infections, the spread of the virus from abroad has a much more significant effect on morbidity in the country. However, when there are already tens of thousands of cases in Israel, the premier says another 50 infections among travelers from overseas are “meaningless.”