Will foreigners be allowed to enter Israel with Passover? – explanation

It is very likely that Israel will not open its airports to Passover foreign travelers, including those who have received the vaccine – certainly in any broad capacity, Post Jerusalem learned.

The airport has been closed to most Israeli commuters for the better part of a month – a closure that is expected to last until at least March 6 – with Health Ministry officials saying that they fear the introduction of anti – vaccine changes before the country completes it. his vaccination campaign.

Over the weekend, the Coronavirus Intelligence and Information Center, which ran IDF intelligence, warned the government to take immediate action to keep a new version found in New York City out of the country. The variant appears to share some similar mutations found in South Africa and may weaken the effectiveness of the Pfizer vaccine.

On Sunday, more than eight million vaccine doses were given in Israel, with more than three million people receiving both doses.

But even as Israelis get the injection, countries are expected for months – if not years – to defend their borders from the novel coronavirus and its mutations. Therefore, it is likely to be the responsibility of passengers either to confirm that they have received the vaccine or to confirm and exclude passengers as has been done by many countries throughout the pandemic. .

The challenge is that countries use a number of vaccine certificates, some of which are more secure than others. In the United States, for example, paper vaccination certificates are issued with the Centers for Disease Control logo that experts say is not particularly secure and could delay the ability to form a bilateral travel agreement between Israel and the US around green passport or certificate.

The Ministry of Health holds talks with two or three countries every day about the mutual recognition of vaccines.

In the first stage, it is more likely that “travel corridors” will be established where only specific routes are available based on the immunology of the disease and bilateral agreements between countries, such as the agreement reached by Israel with the ‘Greece recently, and according to which both countries recognize each other’s vaccine credentials.

However, bilateral recognition will ultimately be inappropriate as airport authorities are unlikely to regulate more than a handful of different credentials.

Therefore, it is expected that, over time, despite laziness by the World Health Organization, a set of international standards will be developed that will allow groups of countries to recognize each other ‘s vaccine qualifications.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said in January that it was opposed, at least “at this time,” to introduce passports or vaccine certificates as a condition of allowing international travelers to travel. into other countries.

He said “the use of immunity certificates for international travel in the context of COVID-19 is not currently supported by scientific evidence and therefore is not recommended by WHO.”

“Apart from the scientific uncertainties regarding protection licenses, there are ethical, legal and human rights aspects related to the privacy of personal data and medical confidentiality; the ability to falsify or engage in dangerous behavior based on a false sense of security; stigma; and discrimination, ”the WHO said at the time.

Some countries are already reaching out to Israel who say they are willing to recognize Israel’s credentials, which means Israelis could enter other countries even before foreign travel begins here.

Once foreign countries are recognized by Israel, it is expected that these travelers will be able to enter Israel and obtain a green passport and reap all the benefits through the same system in which Israelis their passports.

Currently, Israelis who come from abroad and have received the vaccine undergo a serological test to confirm the veracity of their vaccine. If they test positive for antibodies, they will be able to stay out of loneliness. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health is currently working on a system to allow individuals who have received the vaccine in Israel but are not members of one of the country’s health funds to download their vaccine certificates through The green passport application and the website application, too.

In any case, tourism to Israel is not expected to start any time soon.

Apparently, global travel is unlikely to start again in the way that people remember before COVID-19 in the coming months. When it does, there is likely to be a soft, slow reopening that will be gradually extended.

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