Here's how Israel thumped COVID-19 and is now going maskless

Last Sunday on April 18 Israel announced that it has scrapped its outdoor mask mandate The country with a population of nine million serves as the most powerful example of how an efficient vaccine rollout can benefit the world grappling with a pandemicJust months ago Israel had the worldrsquos highest infection rate with the Coronavirus outbreak leaving 6300 people dead and a total of 836000 infections in the last year The Jewish state however sent its caseload tumbling after securing a steady stream of vials and inoculating 53 per cent of its total populationA photo taken in Mahane Yehuda Market in Jerusalem often referred to as The Shuk Shopkeepers welcomes maskless crowds after the governmentrsquos April 18 announcement PicOren RosenfeldIn exchange of PfizerBioNTech jabs it agreed to share data from Israelrsquos centralised trove of medical statistics to study ldquowhether herd immunity is achieved after reaching a certain percentage of vaccination coveragerdquo Pfizer has not signed a similar agreement with any other countryThe vaccinesfordata tradeoff may have sparked debate among data privacy experts but the fact is that Israel leads the world right now when it comes to emerging from the pandemic The country has fully reopened its education system and will soon allow entry to vaccinated foreign tourists into the countrylsquoItrsquos nice to sit in a group like the old timesrsquoDavid Yehezkel has started going to the mall and the marinersrsquo club againDavid Yehezkel 82 guest lecturerBorn in Mumbai I studied at St Maryrsquos and then at Ruparel College In 1963 I immigrated to Israel with my wife Jeanette and daughter Till 2001 I worked as senior chief radio officer in Zim Israel Navigation Co After leaving the sea in 2004 I now work as a lecturer in marine English at the Nautical College I live in Haifa and been here throughout the pandemic Apart from the fact that my classes moved to Zoom not much changed for me I think our kids were more worried for our health since the virus is said to affect senior citizens the most Since my wife and I took the vaccine in December 2020 everyone is relieved The Pfizer jab however is said to offer immunity only for six months So we might have to take another in June I think what helped Israel was the fact that we had an effective police force implementing the lockdown measures Here cops donrsquot use lathis they penalise you if you are caught without a mask Violators were charged 500 Israeli Shekel which is R11500 in Indian rupees as penalty There were many groupsmdashorthodox Jews Arabs and young Israelismdashwho were not enthusiastic about wearing a mask or getting the vaccine But awareness changed that Another thing is that we all have a health card which when swiped into the system throws your medical history The government offers health benefits to its people So having a centralised and organised healthcare system really worked in our favour I remember the first thing I did after the nomask announcement was to go to a mall Masks are still required indoors I also go to the marinersrsquo club where we have a huge garden with a pergola Itrsquos nice to sit there in a group again Like everything else this will passlsquoIsrael has seen many emergencies We will move onrsquoOren Rosenfeld right with a friend chugging beer on Gordon BeachOren Rosenfeld 45 documentary filmmakerWhen the borders started closing in March 2020 I was in Mumbai shooting a documentary film on Jews in the city Abruptly I had to pack my bags Fortunately I did some assignments for Netflix and Discovery here since they could not send their crew to Israel The lockdown was a blessing in disguise until my great uncle Zalman Cohen succumbed to COVID19 last April He was a teenager during WWII and survived the Holocaust at a concentration camp in Auschwitz He was 89 and his death from the virus shook me At the time the Israeli government wasnrsquot sure of what was needed for its people there was no vaccine in sight But soon the Prime Minister acted swiftly Restrictions on international travel continue and some government offices do insist that you wear a mask indoors but largely everything is back to normal When the masks came off the first thing I did was head to Gordon Beach in Tel Aviv it was so crowded that there was no place to put a towel Almost everybody was maskless and enjoying the sun I was done with both the vaccine doses in January so I didnrsquot feel the need to carry a mask either I think people have shortterm memory In Israel we have seen many wars many tragedies We can go from zero to 100 in a minute We are used to emergency situations we will move onlsquoIrsquove started to hug peoplersquoAnna Lison on Moshe Kol Bridge in Eilat on her way to workAnna Lison 37 municipality officerI live in Eilat the southern most port and resort town near Jordon I have been working with the municipality of Eilat and handling international relations for five years From time to time during the lockdowns I had to be in strict quarantine Sometimes I had to take a forced vacation It was scary at the start But I decided to start school again I am doing my masters in international relations This was only possible because of the pandemic While thankfully nothing extreme happened to me or my loved ones my husband Alon was scared he might contract the virus I would worry when hersquod get anxious But finally both of us took a jab in February Since last Sunday I feel a bit weird to take off my mask I still wear it even if I donrsquot need to However outdoor activities have increased for me I went to a theatre show and concert last week My husband refused to join but I had a blast I have begun hugging people again It all feels very newlsquoIrsquoll enjoy the freedom once my Palestinian friends get vaccinatedrsquoRuth Peri is once again socialising outdoors with friendsRuth Peri 33 NGO workerI live in East Jerusalem with my sister and a flatmate I work for Holy Local Aliens a group of Palestinian and Israeli friends who organise trips hikes and other experiences Since my work involves organising public events the lockdown put a stop to my job and affected me emotionally A lot of my friends struggled with depression I am a social person and not being able to meet my friends and family made me sad but the biggest jolt came when my grandfather Solomon Pereplijotschikov died in Germany He lived in an old age home and none of us could go and see him He didnrsquot die of COVID He was down and out because he was lonely and away from family Seniors have borne the worst brunt But things are looking up for me now I got my vaccine dose in March and as the government eased restrictions I started seeing my friends Drivers no longer scream at you if you donrsquot wear a mask My Palestinian friends are yet to get vaccinated Once they do it will be freedom worth enjoying