Days after the cabinet approved the closure of major public venues because of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Knesset has overturned key parts of the measure, bowing to pressure from Israelis who said this would be too much of an economic burden.
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The Knesset Special Committee on Dealing with the Coronavirus Pandemic decided on Monday that public pools and beaches could remain open on weekends and was poised to give a green light to restaurants to continue operating so long as they avoid indoor seating.
A decision on schools and gyms is to be made later this week. Over the past several days, Israelis have been highly critical of the government for imposing an almost-complete lockdown without fully taking into account the cost this would have on businesses and on parents of children in the Israeli school system.
Earlier on Monday, Coalition Chairman Miki Zohar, warned on Monday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was worried over the rolling back of the measures and urged the committee to avoid drastic changes to the cabinet resolution.
"We have about 2,000 new cases every day, if we reach a point of 1,000 critical patients, this will be an entirely new ballgame. Our healthcare apparatus will collapse and we won't be able to save lives. Do not discount this, because if this happens, the economy will no longer exist either," he said.
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