Thailand wants Israel ban reviewed

A total of 137 people walk out of the quarantine facility at the Sattahip Naval Base in Chon Buri on Wednesday. (Photo by  Wichan Charoenkiatpakul)
A total of 137 people walk out of the quarantine facility at the Sattahip Naval Base in Chon Buri on Wednesday. (Photo by Wichan Charoenkiatpakul)

Thailand has called on Israel to review its decision to ban Thais from entering the country in a bid to control the spread of deadly coronavirus (Covid-19).

As a result of the ban, the Labour Ministry will have to postpone sending Thai workers to Israel under the employment cooperation project between the two countries. The situation is being assessed daily.

According to the Thai embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel's Population and Immigration Authority has barred entry to anyone who visited Thailand, Macau, Singapore and Hong Kong during the past 14 days, said Natapanu Nopakun, deputy spokesman of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

Previously, Israel's health ministry had imposed a 14-day house quarantine on visitors from Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau.

Mr Natapanu said the Thai ambassador in Tel Aviv had explained Thai measures to prevent and control coronarivus and clarify the outbreak situation in Thailand.

"Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs listened and understood. It will contact other agencies, particularly Israel's Ministry of Public Health," Mr Natapanu said.

Thailand hoped Israel would review the ban after learning about the measures Thailand is taking to contain the virus, and given the good relations between the countries.

Meir Shlomo, Israel's ambassador to Thailand, told the Bangkok Post on Wednesday that the decision was aimed at preventing the spread of the Covid-19 to Israel.

Israeli ministries were following developments closely and re-assessing the situation in Thailand and in the other countries on a daily basis, he said, adding no one knew at this stage how long the current situation would last.

"Several thousand Thai tourists, businesspeople and workers in agriculture travel to Israel every year. We do hope they will all be able to reschedule their flights and travel to Israel in the very near future," he said.


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Vocabulary

  • agriculture: the science or practice of farming - เกษตรกรรม, การเกษตร
  • assess (verb): to carefully consider a situation, person, or problem in order to make a judgment - ประเมิณ, ประเมิณสถานการณ์
  • ban: an official statement ordering people not to do, sell or use something - การห้าม
  • bar: to officially not allow someone to do something or go somewhere - ห้าม
  • cooperation: a situation in which people or organisations work together to achieve a result that will benefit all of them - การร่วมมือกัน
  • embassy: a building where a group of officials work who represent their government in a foreign country - สถานทูต
  • postpone: to delay; to decide that something will be done at a later time - เลื่อนออกไป
  • prevent (verb): to stop somebody from doing something; to stop something from happening - ขัดขวาง, ป้องกัน, กัน, กีดขวาง
  • quarantine (noun): a situation in which a person or animal that might have a disease is kept separate from other people or animals so that they do not catch the disease - การกักบริเวณ, การจำกัดบริเวณ
  • relations: official dealings between countries - ความสัมพันธ์ระหว่างประเทศ
  • reschedule: to change the time at which something has been arranged to happen, especially so that it takes place later - จัดตารางเวลาใหม่, เปลี่ยนตารางใหม่
  • review: the process of studying or examining a situation, policy, or idea again in order to decide whether it is suitable or satisfactory - การทบทวน

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