Israel skies to partially reopen

Over 96 per cent of eligible Israelis have now been administered at least one dose of the vaccine.

According to The Times of Israel, who cited a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, non-citizens will still need approval from the Exemptions Committee to enter the country.

Israelis who aren’t fully vaccinated will also need to seek permission to leave, and are subject to testing and quarantine when they return.

It has also been reported that flights to and from Frankfurt, Kiev, New York City and Paris will be the first to take off, and will be determined by the Transportation Ministry alongside the Health Ministry.

But the plan drew criticism from Health Ministry officials, who worried about importing foreign strains of the virus.

The Jerusalem Post quoted public health chief Dr Sharon Alroy-Preis as saying: “We see many mutations out there, not just from New York.

“We must make sure that [the quarantine of] people who enter will not be just under police enforcement, otherwise we will find ourselves in a catastrophic situation in a month and we will ask ourselves how we allowed people in carrying mutations.

“In such a situation, the vaccination campaign may be proven useless. We must be careful.”

Israeli airways have been closed to all but a few repatriation flights since January 25.