Israel Closes Crossings with West Bank, Gaza, amid Coronavirus Fears (VIDEO)

Palestinian workers are not able to return to their West Bank homes due to Israeli restrictions. (Photo: via Twitter)

Israeli authorities announced on Saturday the full closure of all crossings with the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, as part of ongoing precautions against the spread of novel COVID-19 (coronavirus).

Under the current closure conditions, workers, merchants and other permit-holders will not be allowed to enter Israel until further notice, with the exception of some permitted cases working in the vital healthcare sector.

Palestinians working in Israel would have to find accommodation at their employer’s discretion in Israel without commuting back to their homes in the West Bank or Gaza at the end of the day, as is the case in the rest of the year.

Previously, thousands of Palestinian workers in the West Bank and Gaza would commute to Israel via the border crossings in the early morning for their work and would return to their homes in the evening.

The government’s spokesman Ibrahim Milhem announced today that six new cases of the novel COVID-19 (coronavirus) were confirmed today, four in Ramallah and two in the Gaza Strip.

With the recent six, the total number of coronavirus cases in Palestine has reached 59 and includes 17 people at Angel Hotel in Bethlehem who have recovered and were sent home on Friday for a 14-day quarantine.

(Palestine Chronicle, WAFA, Social Media)

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