Video: Renewal of passports without queue opens, hundreds arrive at offices: "There is still a lot of time to queue" (Yotam Ronen)
The Population and Immigration Authority announced Monday evening that the passport renewal offices in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv were closed earlier than expected, due to the heavy load. According to the announcement, reception stopped at 20:30 P.M., instead of 22:00 P.M. as previously announced, and dozens of Israelis remained outside the office.
Here's how to renew your passport - click here for the full
guide "I've been here since 17:00 P.M., and more people came after me," said Moshe Petach Tikva. "They made people keep waiting, and then suddenly they remembered to come down with a loudspeaker at 20 p.m. and say it's over. At least say in time, that we won't have to just wait. We explained the mistake to them but they don't care, close and that's it. It's just unbelievable. Update in advance, why say it's open until 00:22 P.M."
Passport renewal appointment in Tel Aviv (Photo: Flash 90, Avshalom Shouni)
Tali, a Tel Aviv resident, accused that "the Interior Ministry can't 'play the same heroes' and say they provide night service, and then close the doors on people waiting in line for hours. Can't prepare and close on time? No one even came to talk to us properly, only the security personnel. We are 50 people here who will now go home. A waste of time, a lack of respect for citizens' time and indescribable audacity. There are people here with strollers. Let them apologize, at least."
Yesterday, the Interior Ministry opened offices in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and Beersheba to renew passports without an appointment, and thousands of Israelis arrived and began standing in lines that continued outside the offices themselves. "I've been waiting in line for an hour," Boaz Cohen from Netanya said yesterday. "I've been waiting since February to renew my passport, the appointment I made is in August, but my flight is already in two weeks so I came to take advantage of this day. Things are going perfectly fine here."
- news
- News in Israel
- Events in Israel
Tags
- Passports
- Ministry of Interior
