Israel, the West Bank and Gaza are dealing with a renewed coronavirus outbreak, leading to proposals and measures intended to curb its spread and mitigate the economic ramifications of the crisis by both Israeli and Palestinian authorities.
Israel currently has 22,723 active cases; 3,057 people have died. In the West Bank, there are 15,991 active cases and 970 deaths, and in Gaza 9,527 active cases and 237 deaths.
How COVID – and Israel’s Trump-brokered lovefest with Arab states – are affecting Palestinians
LIVE UPDATES
8:10 A.M. Israel bans entrance for U.K. arrivals after new strain identified
The Population and Immigration Authority on Saturday night notified all the airlines flying to Israel that with the exception of diplomats, non-Israelis will no longer be allowed to fly to Israel from Britain because of the new mutation of COVID-19 discovered there. The ban includes passengers on connection flights through Britain as well.
The authority also asked the airlines to notify Israeli passengers that they may be required to quarantine themselves in special "coronavirus hotels" upon landing in Israel.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz later instructed the Defense Ministry to reopen special ‘coronavirus hotels’ where citizens returning from countries where the mutated strain was identified will self-isolate.
The new policy orders the hotels to be opened 24 hours from the moment the coronavirus committee will approve it. The Israeli military’s Home Front Command will oversee the function of the coronavirus hotels. (Judy Maltz, Jonathan Lis)
8:00 A.M. Finance Minister Yisrael Katz gets vaccinated
Israel kicked off its vaccination campaign Sunday morning across the country, starting with inoculating healthcare professionals in hospitals and Health Maintainence Organization (HMO) clinics.
Israeli Finance Minister Yisrael Katz received the coroanvirus vaccine this morning. Katz said he was asked to receive the coronavirus vaccine at the start of the campaign, and was very happy to oblige.
"For me, receiving this vaccine represents a moment of optimism on the road to overcoming the coroanvirus," Katz said in a statement to media.
In addition to Katz, public health officials also received the vaccine including Dr. Sharon Elrai Price, Head of Public Health, and the Director of Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, Professor Roni Gamzu, who previously served as Israel’s coronavirus czar from July to December. (Haaretz, Ido Efrati)
SATURDAY
8:00 P.M. Netanyahu, health minister get vaccinated
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine on live television, becoming the first person to be inoculated for coronavirus in Israel.
Health Minister Yuli Edelstein also received the vaccine on live television. His office has launched an extensive public relations campaign to encourage the public to get vaccinated.
“For nearly a year we’ve battled one of the most difficult pandemics humanity has faced in the last hundred years. By the end of the month, millions of vaccines will be here and thereafter millions more. I asked to be vaccinated first with Health Minsiter Edelstein in order to serve by example and encourage you to get vaccinated,” Netanyahu said. “I believe in this vaccine, tens of thousands took it successfully and top scientists approved it.”
An expert committee has set a priority list establishing the order in which different groups would be vaccinated. Healthcare workers will be inoculated first, followed by the elderly and their caregivers in nursing homes or assisted living facilities. Israelis above the age of sixty and those with additional risk factors will also be vaccinated in the first stage. (Judy Maltz)
FRIDAY
3:00 A.M. FDA approves emergency use of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine
Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine on Friday became the second to receive emergency use authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The decision marks the first regulatory authorization in the world for Moderna's vaccine and validation of its messenger RNA technology, less than a year after the first COVID-19 case was identified in the United States.
In June, Israel signed a deal with Moderna, but an expanded deal was signed two weeks ago that would allow the country to receive three times more vaccines in 2021, from 2 million vaccines to 6 million - enough doses for 3 million Israeli citizens. Pfizer has committed to providing Israel with 4 million doses by the end of December.
At the time, the deal was perceived to be a risky move by Israel's government, yet now Israel is expected to be one of the first countries to inoculate its citizens with the Moderna vaccine. (Reuters)
>> Click here to read the full report
FRIDAY
10:44 P.M. Israel orders all incoming travelers to quarantine starting December 26
All passengers arriving in Israel will have to quarantine, regardless of the rate of infection in the country they came from, according to an order signed by Health Ministry Director General Chezy Levy set to go into effect on December 26.
The move, long debated by government officials, is meant to limit outbreaks caused by people returning from abroad with the coronavirus.
Currently, only people returning from "red" countries, where the rate of infection is relatively high, are ordered into quarantine for 14 days, whereas those returning from countries Israel has designated as "green" aren't required to do so.
Turkey and Greece topped the list of popular tourist destinations for Israelis in September and October, but have since been overtaken by the United Arab Emirates, which is designated a "green" country and has lower infection rates than Israel. However, the Health Ministry has pushed to change its classification due to the large numbers of Israelis going there, who often neglect social distancing measures. (Ido Efrati)
7:27 P.M. Israel set to start its vaccinations Sunday
Israel's nationwide COVID-19 vaccination campaign is set to begin next week. On Sunday, health care workers in health maintenance organizations and hospitals will be first to receive the vaccine, and the general public will be able to be inoculated through their HMOs on Monday.
Vaccinations in HMOs will be starting two days ahead of schedule, and will be given out in order of priority: The first to receive the shot will be members over age 60.
Israel now has an estimated 500,000–600,000 doses of vaccine, and additional batches are arriving every few days. At this point, the Health Ministry doesn't foresee any problems regarding the pacing of these deliveries. (Ido Efrati)
>> Click here to read the full report
4:29 P.M. Israel sees nearly 3,000 new cases in a day
Israel has confirmed 2,933 new cases on Thursday, bringing the total number of active coronavirus cases in the country to 22,723. Wedensday and Thursday have seen the highest and second highest number, respectively, of new daily cases since October 12, when there were more than 5,500 new cases.
Last week, the government said it would impose more restrictions if the daily number of new cases surpasses 2,500, but no new measures are expected before Sunday, when the ministerial committee on Israel's coronavirus response is set to meet.
717 patients are currently hospitalized. 429 of them are in serious condition and 105 on life support. 3,057 COVID-19 patients have died so far. (Haaretz)
11:30 A.M. Arye Dery to receive COVID-19 vaccine on Sunday
Interior Minister and Shas Chairman Arye Dery will be among the first Israelis to be inoculated against coronavirus on Sunday.
This comes amid a wide-scale public relations campaign from the Health Ministry to encourage different sectors of Israeli society to get vaccinated. (Chaim Levinson)
THURSDAY
3:55 P.M. Israel will not impose new restrictions before Sunday
Ministers will convene Sunday to discuss increased restrictions in order to curb the spread of coronavirus. Last week, the government said it would impose more restrictions if the daily number of new cases surpasses 2,500 or if the R-number is larger then 1.32.
On Wednesday and Tuesday the daily number of new cases exceeded 2,800. The R-number currently stands at 1.28. (Judy Maltz)
2:15 P.M. WHO says plans to provide vaccines for 20 percent of Palestinians by mid-2021
The World Health Organization said it plans to provide the Palestinian authorities with financial support to acquire vaccines for up to 20 percent of its population through a global mechanism setup to support developing countries, which would be ready by early to mid-2021.
It added the Palestinian Health Ministry plans to procure vaccines for an additional 40 percent of its population through other mechanisms, providing coverage to all Palestinian adults, so a total of 60 percent of the population will be covered. (Jack Khoury)
12:50 P.M. New daily cases in Gaza break record
The number of new infections in the Gaza Strip exceeded the 1,000-mark for the first time. According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, 1,015 new cases have been recorded in the densely populated coastal strip on Wednesday, bringing the total number of active cases to 8,851. (DPA)
9:47 A.M. Deputy health minister: Israel 'would consider' helping the PA with vaccines
Deputy Health Minister Yoav Kish told Kan Bet public radio Israel “would definitely consider helping the [Palestinian] Authority,” if it sees it has more vaccine doses than it needs.
According to Kish, Israel will eventually get “more than 100 percent of the vaccines it needs, and once we see Israel’s needs are fulfilled and we have the ability to do so,” it may hand over some of the vaccines to Palestinian authorities in the West Bank. “Israeli citizens come first,” he said.
Earlier this week, Palestinian officials told Haaretz no agreements have been reached on supplying vaccines to the West Bank or the Gaza Strip, via Israel or otherwise. (Haaretz)
9:38 A.M. Two top Health Ministry officials in quarantine
Health Ministry Director General Chezy Levy has entered quarantine after being in contact with an employee who had tested positive for the coronavirus, the ministry said in a statement, adding that Levy is well and continues working from home.
The Health Ministry’s head of public health services, Sharon Alroy-Preis, has also entered quarantine. (Haaretz)
9:32 A.M. COVID czar: Israelis can stop wearing masks only when 60 percent are vaccinated
Israel’s coronavirus czar, Prof. Nachman Ash, said he estimates Israelis will be able to stop wearing face masks around May or June, “only when we get to 60 percent” of people vaccinated. According to the Israel Hayom daily, the country should be able to start reopening in March or April, as more people are vaccinated and “the weather gets warmer.” (Haaretz)
9:21 A.M. Rate of infection across Israel keep rising
Israel has confirmed more than 750 new cases since the last update on Wednesday evening, bringing the total number of active cases in the country to 21,544.
According to Health Ministry figures, the R number, which represents the average number of people a carrier would transmit the virus to, is currently at 1.28. Any R number bigger than 1 means the virus is spreading.
Israel has set an R number of 1.32 as a target for new restrictions. On Wednesday, Israel has surpassed the target for new daily cases it had set to reimpose some restrictions.
In the Arab community, the R number is lower than the general population, at 1.05, but among ultra-Orthodox Israelis, it is higher, at 1.58.
697 patients are currently hospitalized, with 397 of them in serious condition and 157 on life support. 3,034 COVID-19 patients have died so far. (Haaretz)
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