On Friday, 12,562 Israelis tested positive for the Coronavirus, which is the lowest number of positive cases in a single day since January 4th.

On Shabbos, the number of registered positive tests was less than 4,000 and it may be the first time in the past 47 days where the total number for the day is less than 10,000.  Additionally, the infection rate continued to drop to 0.67 which is a big signifier in
determining the receding trend of the virus.

According to the Health Ministry statistics, on Motzei Shabbos there were currently 822 people hospitalized in the country in serious condition due to suffering from Covid-19. This is a rise in number as there were only 808 at the beginning of Shabbos. Among those in serious condition are 256 who are connected to respirators.

Since the beginning of the virus in Israel, 9,841 people have died from COVID. It is likely that the number of total deaths in Israel will surpass 10,000 by the end of the month. Since the beginning of February, 873 people have died as a result of contracting the disease.

One of the people who tested positive for the virus over the weekend was Agriculture and Rural Development and Minister for the Development of the Periphery, the Negev, and the Galilee Oded Forer. Minister Forer will miss an international agriculture conference that he was slated to attend this week in Dubai. The Minister said that he was supposed to sign on a “wide range of agreements” with his counterpart in the Emirates during the trip. In his place Na’amah Kaufman Fass, Director-General of the ministry will be attending the conference.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)