2020 was a bad year for Gaza hotel-turned quarantine centers
Hotels in the Gaza Strip were unable to host New Year's Eve parties as they turned into quarantine centers due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has led them to incur great losses that bode ill for the sector.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — New Year’s Eve was different this year in the Gaza Strip. Instead of hosting parties and organizing celebrations, hotels hosted individuals kept in quarantine as a precaution amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Since March, and as part of the strict measures taken to combat the virus that causes COVID-19, the Ministry of Interior in the Gaza Strip has transformed Gaza hotels into quarantine centers for those returning to Gaza. This prevented hoteliers from hosting New Year's Eve events.
By the end of 2020, the total number of coronavirus deaths in the Gaza Strip amounted to 371, with more than 4,000 positive cases, including 164 seriously ill patients.
The decision to turn hotels into quarantine centers came as part of the state of emergency that President Mahmoud Abbas announced for the first time on March 5. According to the decision, the full capabilities of the private sector shall be put in place to support the state of emergency.
