Israel announced on Monday it had banned travel to the United States, Canada and eight other countries due to the current coronavirus outbreak of the omicron variant.

According to The Washington Post, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett revealed the decision following a vote by the country's cabinet, and a parliamentary committee is expected to give its final approval.

Once authorized, Israel's travel ban will take effect after midnight on Wednesday morning and includes the U.S., Canada, Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Switzerland and Turkey.

Israel has seen a surge in confirmed coronavirus in recent weeks, forcing the nation to make rare changes to pandemic practices with the U.S., as the two countries share close diplomatic relations.

Last week, Israel announced it had added Britain and Denmark to its "red" list of countries that citizens would be forbidden to visit, citing concern over the spread of the Omicron variant, according to Reuters.

In November, Avanti Destinations announced it had started offering custom FIT travel to Israel with six new itineraries, 20 hotels, and more than 30 private and shared experiences and sightseeing tours. Avanti sells exclusively through travel advisors.

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