Israel is the first country to completely close its borders to foreigners in an effort to keep out the potentially dangerous new Omicron Covid-19 variant.
The ban, which goes into effect later tonight Israeli time, will initially last for at least 14 days.
The government will use the next fortnight to look at whether what the World Health Organisation has dubbed a "variant of concern" is able to evade vaccines and how dangerous it really is or isn't.
Morning Report's Susie Ferguson spoke to CBS correspondent Robert Berger in Jerusalem.
