Israel Records Nearly 300 Cases for the Second Day in a Row

In recent news, the State of Israel has recorded nearly 293 cases of the novel coronavirus. On Tuesday, the total number of tests conducted were 63,000 and a similar number of tests were carried out the previous day. The positive results on both days were also quite similar. On Wednesday, the Health Ministry announced that these are the highest figures that have been recorded in the last two months. 

In the past two weeks, there have been several outbreaks in various schools across the country. The number of people getting infected on a daily basis has risen from10 to 20, to around 300. Active cases, on the other hand, have gone up from 200 to nearly 1800. 

However, the number of patients in a serious condition has remained stable and is somewhere between 20 and 25. In the first two weeks of the month of April, this number was around 150. 

Meanwhile, the vaccination campaign of the government has also taken up speed once again. On Tuesday, the relevant authorities successfully administered no less than 20,000 shots, which is the highest number of jabs given in a day in the last two months. More than half of these doses were administered to children between the ages of 12 and 15. The government had given a high priority to the inoculation of youngsters in this age group, in order to prevent further outbreaks in the country.

As of now, this age group is the one that has the greatest number of current active cases. Around 77,000 have been given the first doses of the coronavirus vaccine, out of the total population of nearly 550,000. 

On Wednesday, the Health Ministry also announced that two guests had resided at the Leonardo Hotel, located in the Dead Sea, between the 23rd and 26th of June. It said that these guests had taken part in the dancing activities being held at the hotel and had later on tested positive for the virus. All those who had been a part of the event had been requested to get tested, even if they do not have any visible symptoms of the coronavirus. They were also asked to get a test done if they had been vaccinated or recovered from the virus. 

In addition, unvaccinated individuals were instructed to enter into quarantine. Those who were considered to be fully immunized were also told to isolate until the results of the test were received. 

The Knesset has also extended the validity of the pandemic-related laws. They will now be imposed for another five months. 

Furthermore, the Constitution and Law Committee got together on Wednesday to discuss the decision of the government to declare the violation of coronavirus guidelines as a criminal sanction. For example, if an individual travels to banned countries, they will be charged without seeking any parliamentary approval. 

Earlier in the week, a fine of NIS 5,000 was approved to be levied on those flying to countries that have been banned, such as Brazil, Argentina, India, Russia, South Africa, and Mexico, without permission from the relevant special committee of the government.