China News Service, February 22 (Xinhua) According to data released by the Israeli health department on the 21st, since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, Israel has confirmed more than 10,000 deaths related to the new crown.
In addition, the Israeli government announced on the 20th that it will fully open its borders from March 1.
Medical staff treat patients with Covid-19 at a hospital in Jerusalem.
According to Israel's "Ha'aretz" report, Israel added more than 200 new crown deaths in the past week, and the cumulative number of new crown deaths exceeded 10,000, reaching 10,001.
The country's coronavirus-related death toll has risen rapidly from 9,000 to 10,000 over the past two weeks.
It took about 4 months for the number of deaths to increase from 8,000 to 9,000.
Data released by the Israeli Ministry of Health on the 21st also showed that during the new crown virus pandemic, the death rate in Israel was 6% higher than the same period in previous years.
In addition, according to Singapore's "Lianhe Zaobao", the Israeli government announced on the 20th that it will fully open its borders from March 1, and passengers who have not been vaccinated against the new crown can also enter.
Tourists enter Israel by plane via Ben Gurion International Airport.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Health Minister Nizan Horowitz issued a joint statement on the same day saying that all passengers must undergo nucleic acid testing before boarding and again upon arrival.
Israel currently only allows entry to tourists who have been fully vaccinated.
As for Israeli citizens, only one nucleic acid test is required upon arrival; unvaccinated Israeli citizens who test negative at the airport are not required to be quarantined.
"Israel was one of the first countries to close its borders, and the incidence of the new crown in our country is continuing to decline. For this reason, it is time to gradually open international borders," Bennett said in a statement.
However, Bennett emphasized that once the epidemic rebounds or a new variant virus emerges, the government will respond quickly and make corresponding adjustments.
Israel reported more than 10,000 new confirmed cases on the 20th, which is much less than the peak of more than 85,000 new cases per day at the end of last month.
Israel first closed its borders to foreign travelers in March 2020.
Inbound arrivals have gradually increased as some restrictions have been lifted, but remain well below pre-pandemic levels.
About 46,000 tourists arrived in Israel in January, compared with 7,800 a year ago, but still nowhere near the 333,000 in January 2020, the data showed.