Since Israel reopened to foreign tourists on November 1, some 300 tourists have been declined entry into the country at Ben Gurion airport - 150 because they failed to comply with the Ministry of Health's green pass regulations and 150 because the immigration authorities suspected they wanted to remain and live in the country, rather than just visit.
Israel's green pass restrictions require tourists to have had three Covid vaccinations or that less than six months has elapsed since their second Covid vaccination.
In addition to these 150 tourists refused entry, many others have not been allowed on flights at their point of departure. Often they turn up at the airport with negative antigen test results rather than PCR test results. One French tourist arrived at the airport in France to catch a flight to Israel to discover that only 13 days had passed since his third booster jab, instead of the required 14 days.
The airlines are supposed to act as a barrier in this way, halting passengers before boarding flights, if they do not have the required green pass. But somehow 150 such passengers have evaded cabin crew checks and managed to arrive in Israel, only to be put on the next flight back to their home country.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on November 8, 2021.
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