The Palestinian Authority officially declared an end to the coronavirus lockdown in the occupied West Bank on Monday, nearly three months after the first state of emergency was declared.
During a press conference in Ramallah, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh announced that the 3 million Palestinian residents of the West Bank could expect a return to normal life, albeit with some restrictions, once the current Eid holidays are over.
Banks, government ministries, courts, shops, and public transportation networks are set to reopen on Wednesday morning, while mosques and churches will be opened beginning at dawn prayers on Tuesday morning.
Shtayyeh credited a sharp decline in coronavirus cases across the occupied territories, with only 122 active cases 38 in the Gaza Strip, 60 in the Jerusalem governorate, and 24 in Hebron as the reason for the government’s decision to reopen.
According to Shtayyeh, the government will be enforcing a number of health safety protocols on businesses and institutions, as well as citizens, to prevent another outbreak of the virus. Anyone found to be violating the government’s rules will be subject to legal repercussions.
Worshipers, for example, must maintain socially distanced within houses of worship, and must be wearing face masks. In the case of Muslim worshipers, people will be asked to perform ablution at home, and must bring their own prayer rugs with them.
He assured that certain sectors of the economy that posed higher risk for virus transmission like wedding and event halls, sports clubs, restaurants, and daycare centers will be opened pending further health protocols to be announced in the coming days.
Shtayyeh also reassured citizens that they had nothing to fear over the return of nearly 30,000 laborers from Israel prior to the Eid holiday, saying that the government found no positive cases among a random sample of 5,408 tests.
The easing in the measures and gradual return to normal life is being taken with caution, the premiere stressed. If we see new cases developing, we will reinstate all previous measures, he warned.
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