JERUSALEM (JTA) — The Palestinian Authority placed two major West Bank cities, Hebron and Nablus, on lockdown following a steep rise in COVID-19 cases.
The PA said Saturday that more than 100 Palestinians in the West Bank tested positive for the coronavirus in 24 hours, Ynet reported.
Over the next five days, the cities will under a strict curfew, PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said. Only grocery stores and pharmacies will be permitted to open, as well as factories which produce what is described as essential products. All social gatherings in the West Bank have been cancelled.
There have been a total of 1022 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the West Bank since the start of the pandemic, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. Some 41 cases were discovered in Hebron on Saturday alone.
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