Knesset coronavirus panel asks government to pare back some restrictions

After over four hours of meeting, the Knesset’s coronavirus committee is seeking for the government to ease several restrictions, but has not yet moved to overrule Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The committee says it wants the government to remove beaches from the list of places shuttered during weekend-only lockdowns. Deputy Health Minister Yoav Kisch says he sees no issue with keeping beaches open, but says there are points, like changing rooms, where crowding can happen, according to Ynet.

The panel is also asking the government to allow up to 35 percent capacity inside restaurants and only social distancing guidelines outside with seemingly no limits on crowd size, rather than shutting restaurants altogether. It’s unclear how that would work, with most gatherings now limited to 10 people or less. Restaurants are set to shutter on Tuesday in line with guidelines approved by the government on Friday.

The panel also wants to keep gyms open, and to sweeten the deal says that attendance should be capped at one person per 10 square meters, down from the current person per seven square meters.

The recommendations indicate that the panel is generally okay with other restrictions passed by the government and may not seek another direct confrontation, after Netanyahu threatened to fire panel head MK Yifat Shasha-Biton.