The Corona Cabinet has decided not to further ease the restrictions at this stage

The Corona Cabinet has decided not to further ease the restrictions at this stage, and to discuss this again next week in accordance with the updated morbidity data. According to the position of the Ministry of Health, it is not possible to bring forward the opening of the stores, which is scheduled for November 15.
At the hearing, Finance Minister Israel Katz called on ministers to allow small businesses and shops on the street, hairdressers and beauty and cosmetics salons to resume their activities as early as Sunday, to allow self-collection from all businesses from tomorrow and to approve return to first- to fourth-grade classes on November 1. "The Ministry of Health must end the suffocating closure on businesses in Israel that have been closed for more than a month and a half," Katz said at the hearing.
In a video released today by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he addressed the public and said: "We need to do three things now - first of all, to preserve the success of the closure achieved with your help. You made a great effort and I thank you. The second thing is to move from stage to stage. "There will be fewer, but they will be ranked. The third thing - if there seems to be an increase back, as is happening now in European countries, we will have to bring back some of the restrictions."
Yesterday it was said in the Ministry of Education that the requirement of the Ministry of Health to split the first and second grades into small groups will not allow full return of the lower classes to schools soon, and that they will be forced to study intermittently. A senior Ministry of Education official said the demand was officially delivered only yesterday. At the beginning of the school year, only third grades and above were split into groups. According to the source, the Ministry of Education did not have time to prepare for splitting all the strata - which would require the recruitment of about 13,000 teachers and additional teaching assistants. Such preparations, according to the Ministry of Education, require an additional billions of shekels, as well as about five weeks for the recruitment and absorption of new teachers.
In view of the position of the Ministry of Education, it was proposed to postpone the resumption of studies in the primary schools and instead bring forward the resumption of commerce, which was included in the third stage of the closure. However, according to the Ministry of Health, this is not possible now. The ministry further clarified that an interval of two weeks must be observed in the implementation of the steps, since this period of time makes it possible to establish the consequences of the relief.

Transport Minister Miri Regev did not order public transportation back to full operating hours, despite the removal of traffic restrictions earlier this week and contrary to the opinion of Corona projector Prof. Roni Gamzo. Public transport activity now stops at 22:00 - in contrast to weekdays when it stops between midnight and 01:00. At the same time, the Israel Railways was completely shut down on Fridays and Saturdays. Gamzo told Haaretz that he would demand today (Wednesday) a discussion in the Corona cabinet to return public transportation to full operating hours.
Sources in the Ministry of Transportation initially said that the reason for the policy was the protection of public health, but did not refer Haaretz to a professional opinion in support of this. An official response was later given by the ministry stating that the decision in the matter was made that "economic and commercial activity is very partial, and leisure activity is completely disabled." The health justification is not mentioned in the response.
Many passengers have complained in recent days that unlike private car owners, they cannot return home from work at night due to limited public transport hours. Sources in some of the transportation companies told Haaretz that they also disagree with the Ministry of Transportation's decision.
Shimrit Gutman, CEO of the "15 Minutes" organization, which works to improve public transportation in Israel, said that many approached her to complain about it. "What is the solution that the Minister of Transportation offers for all those passengers who depend on public transportation to get to and from work?" We are talking about sellers in writers, security workers and shift workers who turn to us helplessly. There is no conceivable reason to put only public transport passengers on a night curfew, and to harm the ability of the most vulnerable populations to make a living. "
Earlier this month, Regev ordered public transportation companies to resume urban travel after reducing them to 25 percent. The Minister reversed her decision to reduce public transport activities as part of the struggle in Corona a day after the publication in Haaretz about the difficulties caused to weak and vital workers and the health risk they encountered due to the high density of these lines.
The Ministry of Transportation responded: "About a week ago, the hours of operation of public transportation were extended by an additional two hours, until 22:00 at night, in order to make it easier for commuters to work. However, most restrictions imposed are still in force. "Therefore, at this stage, there is no place to operate travel after 22:00 at night. It should be noted that hospital shift workers are transported at night by special shuttles operated by their employers."
It was also reported that "On Fridays and Saturday evenings the number of passengers was less than 10%, compared to the pre-Corona crisis. Public transport operators were instructed to reinforce the buses, on the lines parallel to the train if necessary. "Very great progress has been made in the infrastructure works and the electrification project. During the period of the second closure, further progress was made, as part of which the schedules for electrification of the railway were shortened by several years."