Israel Continues Curfew as Covid-19 Cases Hit 10,000 With 86 Deaths

The curfew and other restrictions imposed on all Israelis to slow the spread of the coronavirus over the Passover holiday are supposed to be lifted Friday at 6 a.m. But at press time, as the number of Israelis infected with the novel virus hits 9,968 – 166 in serious condition – and 86 people are dead, it appears that these stricter regulations may be extended.

Ministers of a special committee chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to meet overnight at the recommendation of the Health Ministry. If approved, possibly through the end of the eight-day Festival of Freedom, intercity travel would still be prohibited except in urgent cases and when food, medicine or other essential services are not available nearby. 

Public transport – except cabs – and flights will not run at least until Sunday morning. And, as has become the new normal, citizens will only be able to travel up to 100 meters from home.

Channel 12 reported that some airlines did receive special permission from the Transportation and Interior ministries to land in the country, including from places with high coronavirus counts, such as New York. Those people entered the country without being tested for coronavirus and without entering isolation, according to the news. The Health Ministry said it was unaware of the flights.

A spokesperson for the Finance Ministry assured businesses on Thursday night that restrictions imposed on them for the holiday will be removed Friday morning as scheduled. 

In addition, the National Security Council said it has presented an exit strategy plan for after Passover. The plan includes increasing the percentage of workers allowed to return to the field, plus testing different models of working in shifts or on different days. Special education would resume and slowly thereafter preschools, and eventually the entire school system. 

Soon, the NSC’s plan would allow for people to travel further from their homes. However, the plan does keep malls and most recreational establishments closed.

The plan also involves releasing cities by level of infection – least infected first – and people by age group – youngest and healthiest first.

There is some talk of extending the closure just on those cities with the highest rates of infection, such as Jerusalem and Bnei Brak. 

On Thursday night, when 121 people were reported to be on ventilators, the Health Ministry released updated data on the numbers of coronavirus patients by municipality, as well. The report showed a promising trend in most areas. 

Health Ministry director-general Moshe Bar Siman Tov told Channel 12 that the trends is due to both the country’s coronavirus policies and the public’s adhering to the ministry’s guidelines. 

However, not all cities are alike. In Jerusalem, the number of confirmed coronavirus patients between Tuesday and Thursday increased by 11.3% and reached 1,630 and in Bnei Brak it spiked by 15% within two days to 1,594.

There was also a sharp 25% increase of patients in Elad and a 24% increase in Tiberias. In Rishon Lezion, the number of patients rose by 18% within two days and reached 180. In Modi'in Illit, the number of confirmed patients increased by 15.2% to 174. 

In Tel Aviv, which has the fourth highest number of patients, there are now 415 infected people. Up 5.6% in the last two days.

Defense Minister Naftali Bennett slammed the Health Ministry’s proposal to continue the nation-wide lockdown past Friday morning, arguing Thursday night that the shutdown of the country will lead to devastating damage to Israel’s economy.

“The sweeping closure of Israel, which was very correct at the beginning, cannot continue to be the main tool over time, due to its devastating impact on businesses and jobs in Israel,” he said. “The Health Ministry is rooted in an ideology that does not believe in the centrality of testing which is a tool for exiting this crisis.”

Bennett argued that Israelis must be able to return to work and that conducting more coronavirus tests while keeping high-risk people in quarantine, such as the elderly, but allowing others to work would be more sensible. 

When it comes to deaths, the greatest number of Israelis who have fallen victim to COVID-19 are elderly, including many residents of the country’s senior living facilities, where former residents now constitute around 30% of all coronavirus deaths. 

In the last two days, three more former residents of Mishan geriatric center died, bringing the death toll from that facility to 11. In addition, two more people passed away from the senior center in Yavniel, bringing the death toll there to five. 

The news comes on the backdrop of an announcement by the Health Ministry late Tuesday that the country will be increasing screenings specifically in nursing homes so that when one resident or staff member falls ill with coronavirus, all the residents and staff will be tested. This initiative launched already during yom tov and, according to Magen David Adom and the Health Ministry, some 3,000 tests were carried out in nursing homes on Thursday. A similar number is expected to be performed each of the coming days.

Nonetheless, Bennet called once again Thursday night for his ministry and the IDF to be given immediate responsibility for testing in an effort to curb the virus, he warned that the country not only risks not being able to exit the crisis but that it risks a renewed outbreak of the epidemic.

“Without extensive, quick and accurate testing, we will have to continue the hammer’ approach that requires a sweeping closure on all Israeli citizens, instead of a ‘tweezers’ policy that will allow the Israeli economy to open alongside local isolation of corona carriers or the closure of specific corona areas,” he said.

According to the defense minister, there are too few tests and people wait at least five to six days before receiving a result.

“The lack of belief in the importance of the tests is as if a brigade commander does not want to receive intelligence on enemy territory for action,” he said. “This is the most urgent task of the Israeli government. We shouldn't waste even one day. "

In response, a senior official close to the prime minister said that “in an emergency, a government minister is expected to behave responsibly and hold discussions in the professional forums of the government and not in the media. The prime minister, who is conducting the fight against coronavirus responsibly and optimally with experts in Israel and around the world, allows all ministers to express their views fully in government debates.”

On the positive side, there were three senior coronavirus patients aged 91, 96 and 97 who were released from the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya over the holiday and were able to return home to a senior facility in the city.

Moreover, the country’s youngest coronavirus patient, a five-week-old baby who was diagnosed with coronavirus, arrived at Sheba Medical Center late Wednesday. He is in good condition and his life is not in danger, the hospital said. The baby is being treated in the hospital’s special coronavirus unit by a pediatric intensive care team.

It is assumed that the baby became infected by a close family member who is also being treated for the virus at Sheba. 

For the most part, Israelis obeyed the emergency regulations imposed for the Passover holiday, imposed as part of efforts to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus. 

Thousands of police officers, accompanied by some 1,400 unarmed IDF soldiers, continued extension enforcement operations throughout the country as part of “Operation Spring Protection.” The police used helicopters, drones and “other technology” to implement the regulations and handed out over 1,000 fines to people violating the strict government regulations.

On Sunday at 7 am, a new directive will enter into force: the mandatory wearing of a face mask in public spaces by anyone over the age of six and without a disability. Citizens will be required to wear masks while driving, as well, if they have another person in their car who is not a member of their immediate family.