Israel’s High Court nullifies government’s 3,000 cap on returning Israelis

Three high court judges ruled on Wednesday that the restrictions on the entry of returning Israelis through Ben Gurion airport were unconstitutional – especially six days before a national election – and must be lifted on Saturday. The court said that the current 3,000 ceiling on arrivals was ‘disproportionate’ and “violated their basic civil rights” The judges argued that the government’s decisions were not supported by relevant data on the numbers of Israelis affected.

The restriction was imposed when health experts determined that new coronavirus mutants were being carried into Israel from abroad,  especially through the international airport. The Health Ministry’s health and legal experts are now conferring on whether to appeal the High Court ruling on the grounds that the airport is a major source of new covid-19 variants and threaten to disrupt the year-long effort to bring the pandemic under control.