Israel Reinstates Mandatory Mask-Wearing Indoors Amid COVID-19 Surge

TEL AVIV (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th June, 2021) Israel has reinstated mandatory mask-wearing indoors in a bid to halt a flare-up in Covid19 cases driven by the more infectious Delta variant of virus, the country's health ministry said on Friday.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after the country's authorities canceled the requirement to wear masks indoors as a preventative measure against the coronavirus.

"In connection with the increase in the incidence of COVID-19, from 12.00 today, the obligation to wear masks is introduced everywhere, with the exception of open spaces," the statement from the ministry said.

Israel embarked on one of the world's most rapid COVID-19 vaccine rollouts in December, with its citizens already getting their second shots in January. On June 1, the country lifted almost all coronavirus restrictions, except for mandatory mask wearing, after registering a stable downward trend in new infections.

In recent days, the country has detected isolated COVID-19 cases, with a cumulative total of over 800,000 and a death toll of more than 6,000.