Israel Suspends All Flights from China, Isolates Arrivals over Coronavirus Outbreak
Rina Rozenberg Kandel and Ido Efrati, Haaretz, January 30, 2020
Israel is not allowing flights from China to enter the country until further notice, and all travelers coming back from China will be put in isolation at home for two weeks in light of the coronavirus outbreak, Health Minister Yaakov Litzman said on Thursday.
Earlier, El Al Israel Airlines said that it is suspending its flights between Tel Aviv and Beijing until March 25, but will operate flight on Thursday of this week from the Chinese capital to Israel as scheduled.
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China’s Hainan Airlines has also announced the suspension of most of its international flights. That includes its flights between Beijing and Tel Aviv, which, at this point, are being cancelled from next Monday through March 28. Hainan will continue operating its weekly flights between Ben-Gurion airport and the Chinese city of Shenzhen.
At the beginning of the week, the Israeli Health Ministry recommended avoiding all “non-essential” travel to China and entirely avoiding the province of Hubei, where Wuhan is located. The ministry is advising anyone who has visited China and comes down with a fever and cough during their travels or within two weeks of their return to seek immediate medical treatment at their local HMO clinic or an emergency room. The directive instructs anyone with breathing difficulties who has recently been in China to call ahead before going to an emergency room.
