Jerusalem closures ‘political,’ mayor says
Politicians spar over restricting haredi neighborhoods • IDF screens 400 in Beitar Illit
Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion called the government’s decision to turn several of the city’s haredi (ultra-Orthodox) neighborhoods into restricted zones “political.”
“The decision to restrict neighborhoods was political,” the mayor tweeted, hours after the restrictions rolled out at noon on Sunday. He said he was moving up to 150 infected people to “coronavirus hotels,” of which he was an advocate. redrawing the boundaries. However, Lion said “there is no intention of making changes.”
Overnight, a special ministerial committee on the coronavirus approved placing four areas of Jerusalem under partial lockdown through
Wednesday. The people in these restricted areas cannot leave unless they are going to work, getting essential medical treatment, attending the funeral of a nuclear family member or transferring their
children to an ex-spouse. In addition, they can attend legal proceedings or access other essential services with approval.
There are four districts specified by the committee, which include 17 communities, most of them haredi. Among the areas that will now be restricted are Har Nof, Ramot, Romema, Neveh Ya’acov, Mea She’arim and Geula.
The move came after days of deliberation and protest against such a decision by Lion and haredi leaders, and at the urging of some members of the Health Ministry and Jerusalem’s liberal-leaning Hitorerut movement.
UTJ MK Moshe Gafni called the move “uncanny” and said it was “on the verge of a scandal.”
“The public’s trust is paramount in this fight, and this trust is unfortunately eroded every day,” the haredi lawmaker said.
Health Minister Ya’acov Litzman, head of UTJ, also pushed back. He called for establishing new criteria for evaluating which cities, regions and neighborhoods should be restricted that are not based on sector.
Litzman made the recommendation at a follow-up meeting of the ministerial committee on Sunday.
The criteria he recommended are places that have 50 or more coronavirus cases, a higher percentage per 100,000 people than the national average and that the number of cases has been rising over the last three days.
At the same time, Hitorerut cheered the decision, though it said these restricted zones might be too little, too late.
“Unfortunately, we have already lost a week and a half in the fight against the coronavirus only because Moshe Lion is engaged in politics instead of public health,” the Hitorerut Party said.
It further stated that the mayor’s announcement was published in such a way that most residents who are asked to enter the isolation are not even aware of it.
“There is great uncertainty and confusion,” it said.
The only other city that has been designated a restricted zone is haredi Bnei Brak, which has more coronavirus cases per capita than any other city in the country. However, the Health Ministry reported on Sunday that the percentage of patients in the city has started to decline.
Deri said he believes at least 50% of Bnei Brak can be released from restrictions “because there is a low percentage of morbidity.”
He noted that there “is a great deal of interest in getting coronavirus patients out of Bnei Brak” for the benefit of the patients and the other residents. “As patients are