Israel to allow Indians living, working in country to travel freely amid Omicron fears

Israeli Ambassador to India Naor Gilon, on November 28, stated that Indians already living, working, and studying in Israel can travel in and out of the country. The Israeli government on Sunday banned all foreign nationals from entering the country owing to the development of the new COVID-19 version 'Omicron.' News agency ANI wrote on Twitter, "Indians can leave Israel as long as flights are available. Only permanent residents can enter Israel. So Indians who have been working, living, studying in Israel already can come in, no problem with that: Ambassador of Israel to India Naor Gilon."

As part of its measures to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant within its borders, Israel's government stopped all foreign nationals from entering the country and reintroduced a controversial contact-tracing surveillance programme on Sunday. The ban, which is subject to government's approval, will last 14 days, according to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. So far, Israel has confirmed only one case of the potentially more infectious Omicron variant, which was first discovered in South Africa. A three-day mandatory quarantine for all vaccinated Israeli nationals, and a seven-day quarantine for those who have not been vaccinated, would be necessary in addition to the entry prohibition for non-Israelis.

India mandates RT-PCR test for overseas arrival

Moreover, Australia and Austria have reported their first cases of the variant, joining a group of countries that includes the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, Israel, and Italy. Authorities believe the strain poses a higher risk of people becoming ill with COVID-19 a second time and is more transmissible than other variants. With the threat of COVID's omicron variant looming large, the government said on Sunday that overseas arrivals will now be required to upload their 14-day travel history and valid negative RT-PCR test reports to the Air Suvidha portal before commencing on their journey to India. The results of the RT-PCR test should not be older than 72 hours.

Passengers travelling from countries classified as 'at-risk,' according to the government's decree, will be subjected to testing upon arrival. If the passengers test positive, their samples will be forwarded to INSACOG for genome sequencing, and they will be quarantined at the facility. If they test negative, they will be placed in home quarantine for seven days, after which they will be tested on the eighth day and their health will be monitored for the next seven days.

(With inputs from agencies)

Image: AP