Israel to reopen for small foreign tour groups

Israel will allow small foreign tour groups from selective countries to visit from Sept. 19 under a pilot programme to kick-start tourism, the government said on Sunday. Tour groups of between 5 and 30 people from countries on Israel's green, yellow and orange lists will be allowed to enter the country provided all group members have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the tourism ministry said. Individual tourists, who have not been allowed to visit Israel since the outset of the coronavirus pandemic there in March 2020 unless they are visiting family members, will still not be allowed to enter outside of a tour group. In May, amid a drop in COVID-19 infections, Israel had allowed in small tour groups. More than 2,000 visitors arrived, mainly from the United States and Europe, raising hopes of recovery within a tourism industry battered by the pandemic. But the initiative was paused in August as the Delta variant spread, leading to a surge in COVID-19 infections in Israel, despite a world-leading vaccination rollout.<br/>