Israel to announce 5-week partial shutdown of economy — report

14 March 2020, 5:49 pm

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Israel is set to announce this evening a five-week partial shutdown of the economy, Channel 12 says.

Supermarkets will remain open, but malls, coffee shops and restaurants will close. Non-essential workplaces will switch to working from home, according to the report.

The network says the measures will not amount to a lockdown of citizens, but are aimed at minimizing the number of people in the same place as much as possible to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

The purpose of the expected move is to “dilute” workplaces; if during these five weeks things the situation improves, some of these restrictions will be lifted.