Police at a temporary lockdown "checkpoint" at the entrance to Jerusalem
Police at a temporary lockdown "checkpoint" at the entrance to JerusalemYonatan Sindel/Flash90

New coronavirus legislation will be introduced on Sunday for approval by members of the Ministerial Committee for Legislation. This comes after the legislation was softened by Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn in the face of public criticism over concern that the legislation would limit civil rights.

The legislation includes, among other things, limitations on defining an area as restricted due to presence of the virus. It will not be possible define a community as restricted for more than a week. A state of emergency can be declared for a maximum of thirty days, and the Knesset can cancel the declaration at any point.

The legislation also states that the public will not be denied the right to protest and the courts will not be shut down. A proposal to permit police entry into civilian homes without a court order, which garnered widespread public condemnation, will not be approved.

Earlier, outgoing Health Ministry Director-General Moshe Bar Siman Tov voiced concern over the rising number of coronavirus infections.

"We need to work according to the assumption that we are in the middle of an outbreak of unknown proportions," Bar Siman Tov said in a meeting.

According to sources involved in the meeting, Bar Siman Tov used the term "second wave."

However, in a conversation with N12, he said: "I don't think that there needs to be a second wave in Israel, if we act appropriately, but we have a rise in infections and it is clear, undeniable, and tangible, and it'll take time until we understand its true proportions."