Israel ended its outdoor mask mandate on Sunday, now that about 80 percent of its adult population has received both doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, according to reports.
“Being without a mask for the first time in a long time feels strange. But it’s very strange, “Amitai Hallgarten, 19, told Reuters.
“If I need to mask myself inside to end this, I’ll do everything I can.”
At the start of the pandemic last year, Israel required residents to put on facial blankets while they were out while not exercising. But now that about 5 million people in Israel have received the two-dose vaccine, health officials are beginning to ease the restrictions, Reuters reported.
“The infection rate in Israel is very low thanks to the success of the vaccine campaign in Israel and therefore it is possible to alleviate it [restrictions]”Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said in a statement.
In January, Israel faced about 10,000 new infections a day, but amid an increase in vaccinations, that number has dropped to about 200 daily and hospitalizations and deaths are almost non-existent, France 24 reported. .
While the end of overseas masking is a positive step forward to return to normalcy, the country still requires that all who enter the country, including citizens, be isolated.
The country’s health ministry noted that there are seven cases of a new Indian variant and that they are still evaluating the impact it may have on transmission.
“We are now at the forefront of the world when it comes to getting out of the coronavirus,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told reporters.
“[But] we are not done with the coronavirus yet. You can come back “.