Israel’s cabinet voted shortly before midnight on Sunday night to extend the nationwide lockdown until Friday morning at 7 a.m. and extend the closure of Ben-Gurion Airport until Sunday.

The decision comes as Israel continues to grapple with a still-high morbidity and mortality rate from the UK coronavirus variant.

Also at the meeting, a committee was established to facilitate the operation of rescue flights for Israeli stranded abroad. The committee will be responsible for evaluating exemption requests from Israelis seeking to return home for humanitarian reasons.

Finally, the cabinet voted to reimpose mandatory quarantine in state-run hotels for those allowed to enter the country during the closure.

The cabinet is scheduled to reconvene on Wednesday to discuss whether the restrictions should be further extended.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)