Issued on: Edited:
Hundreds of people vaccinated against Covid-19 packed a football stadium in Tel Aviv on Friday for the first of four concerts organized by the municipality, as Israel eases virus restrictions.
The 500 fans wore masks and sat in the central part of Bloomfield Stadium with 30,000 seats to attend a performance by Israeli pop star Ivri Lider.
“It’s really cool. I’m so happy, ”said Reut Gofer when she arrived at the venue.
“I hope this is the beginning of a period in which we will return to our normal lives,” she added.
Israel began easing restrictions in February after a third exclusion and has since gradually reopened shopping malls, gyms, swimming pools, hotels and some cultural facilities.
But in most cases, the return to normalcy is reserved for people who have been fully vaccinated, under a so-called “green badge” scheme.
Israel is one of the world leaders in Covid-19 vaccinations per capita.
More than half of the country’s nine million inhabitants have already received the two recommended doses of Pfizer / BioNTech coronavirus vaccine since vaccination began in December.
“Since a majority of the population has already been vaccinated … we can finally open up our cultural and recreational activities,” said Eytan Shwartz, a Tel Aviv Municipality spokesman.
“I hope we will be able to complete the stadium (Bloomfield) soon,” he added.
Israel has registered more than 796,000 cases of Covid-19, including more than 5,800 deaths.
(AFP)