Haaretz - back to home page
LOG INSUBSCRIBE NOWSubscribe now

Drone Footage Shows Israel's Most Crowded City Under Coronavirus Curfew

Aerial shots reveal post-apocalyptic nature of the coronavirus closure conditions in the Israeli city of Bnei Brak

Send in e-mailSend in e-mail
Go to comments
new-hdc-logo
Haaretz
new-hdc-logo
Haaretz

The main streets of the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak in central Israel would normally be crowded, especially days before the Passover seder. But drone footage reveals the post-apocalyptic nature of the lockdown conditions the city was put under after it was declared a 'restricted zone' by the Israeli government on Thursday, in an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Confirmed cases ballooned in the religious Tel Aviv suburb in the last week of March, with many blaming a lack of information and the reticence of local officials to enforce and encourage social distancing regulations. 

As of Sunday, 1,218 Bnei Brak residents had tested positive for the virus, the equivalent of  5.74 patients per thousand inhabitants - but authorities fear many more will test positive, there and in other Haredi neighborhoods, in the coming days.

>> Read more: Coronavirus, the greatest challenge to ultra-Orthodox Jewish life since the Holocaust

The major artery of Jabotinski Street in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under full lockdown, April 2020.
The commercial Rabbi Akiva Street in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak, April 2020.
Jabotinski Street in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak, looking east to west, April 2020.
Israeli security forces from Home Front Command in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Moti Milrod
An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man shopping for eggs ahead of the Passover holiday in the central Israeli city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Ofer Vaknin
A man praying in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Meged Gozani
A man walking in a deserted street in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Meged Gozani
Israeli security forces enforce movement restrictions in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak, April 2020.Credit: Tomer Appelbaum
An Israeli soldier on duty during a coronavirus lockdown in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak, April 2020.Credit: Meged Gozani
Men praying in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Moti Milrod
Israeli security forces enforce movement restrictions in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak, April 2020.Credit: Tomer Appelbaum
Men walking in a deserted street in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020. Credit: Moti Milrod
Shuttered stores in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Meged Gozani
A Bnei Brak resident walks her dog during a coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Meged Gozani
Deserted streets in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak under coronavirus lockdown, April 2020.Credit: Meged Gozani

Comments