Israel’s schools will begin as scheduled on September 1 and children over 12 can be vaccinated during school hours, the coronavirus cabinet voted after midnight on Sunday.

In “red” areas with high COVID rates, 8th-12th graders will only attend school if at least 70% of the students are vaccinated or recovered, and if the rate is below 70% they will study via Zoom.

The Green Pass policy will be implemented for all school staff members, which means they are required to present proof of recovery or vaccination or a recent negative COVID test in order to enter school grounds. About 37,000 Israeli teachers are still unvaccinated, according to Education Ministry data.

Some government officials, including Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked, Defense Minister Benny Gantz, and Public Security Minister Omer- Bar-Lev pushed for schools to open a month late this year due to the currently high infection rate coupled with the fact that there are very few actual school days in September due to the Yamim Tovim. However, they were outvoted by the other ministers.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)