Bnei Brak faces full closure after 38pc infected with coronavirus

The government may approve “restricted area” status for Bnei Brak, the haredi town in central Israel, after 38pc of its population, some 75,000 individuals, are estimated to be infected by covid-19. All residents will be confined to home and strict traffic restrictions enforced. The town’s population lives in exceptionally crowded conditions and has a high proportion of elderly people who are in relatively high risk of fatal infection.