There are a total of 12,758 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Israel, with 181 patients in serious condition of whom 137 are ventilated.

Among those are 2,818 people who have already completely recovered from the disease, thus leaving the total current carriers at a little less than 10,000.

Israel’s youngest coronavirus patient, an eight-day-old baby from Beit Shemesh born at Hadassah Har Hatzofim was diagnosed after being brought to the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon a week after birth due to a high fever. The parents both subsequently tested positive for the virus and well and mother and baby are hospitalized with both reported to be in good condition.

A 96-year-old man who was hospitalized in very serious condition in the coronavirus ward for ventilated patients in Ziv Hospital in Tzfas for two weeks has recovered from the virus and was transferred to another ward to be weaned off the ventilator.

Over the past few days, Deir al-Asad, a northern Arab village with a population of 12,234, was identified as the epicenter of an outbreak of the coronavirus, with three nearby villages being affected as well.

Israel Police have established checkpoints in the town and are stopping any non-residents from entering the area. Deir al-Asad Mayor Ahmed Dabbah met with top government officials and the IDF’s Home Front Command and a plan was formulated to remove those with the virus from the community to a “coronavirus hotel” that will be set up in Nahariya.

The high rate of infection in the town may be due to a mobile drive through testing site recently opened in Karmiel, a Jewish city near the communities, which enabled more Arab residents to be tested. Arab Joint List MK Ahmed Tibi formed an agreement with Dabbah and MDA head Eli Bin to open a drive-in testing site in the village.

*ח״כ עודה כורז לתושבי דיר אל אסד להשאר בבתיהם*

בעקבות עלייה מדאיגה במספר החולים המאומתים בדיר אל אסד יו״ר הרשימה המשותפת ח״כ איימן עודה הגיע לשטח כדי להתעדכן עם ראשי הרשויות ולכרוז לתושבים לנהוג באחריות ולהשאר בבתים.

*מצ״ב סרטון עם כתוביות בערבית – קרדיט דוברות הרשימה המשותפת* pic.twitter.com/uheRlDEUBj

— אבירם שחר (@kbnv30) April 15, 2020

Jisr az-Zarqa, another Arab town in Israel, also has a high rate of coronavirus infections. Joint Arab List MK Yousef Jabareen has called for increased testing in Arab Israeli communities, warning that the lack of testing in Arab communities “could lead to an unprecedented disaster.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)