Israel: 23 Deaths, 5,591 Cases, Almost NIS 2 Million Raised For “Coronavirus Orphans”

There are 5,591 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Israel as of Wednesday, a jump of 760 cases in the last 24 hours, the largest jump to date since the coronavirus count began. There are 97 patients in serious condition, of which 76 are on ventilators.

The number of fatalities in Israel from the coronavirus reached 23 on Wednesday afternoon, when the Health Ministry stated that a 69-year-old woman passed away at the Sha’arei Tzedek Medical Center and a 74-year-old man passed away at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon.

Israel recorded its 21st death when a 98-year-old woman passed away in Soroka Hospital in Be’er Sheva overnight Tuesday. The woman was a resident of the Mishan nursing home in Be’er Sheva, where there has been an outbreak of COVID-19. One resident passed away last week and other residents are hospitalized in serious condition. All residents of the nursing home will be tested for the coronavirus on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu ordered the Defense Ministry on Wednesday to immediately quarantine all Israelis who arrive from overseas in “coronavirus hotels,” a move that Defense Minister Naftali Bennett had announced last week would be implemented but was subsequently dropped.

Netanyahu’s announcement came after Israeli media outlets reported that hundreds of Israelis had returned from coronavirus hot spots such as New York and France without being tested for the virus or even monitored to ensure they self-quarantined. Former Health Ministry Director-General Gabi Barabash said on Wednesday morning that allowing Israelis from hotspots into the country without any supervision is “idiotic” and risks turning Israel into a “branch of New York.” However, apparently the Health Ministry does not currently have enough testing kits to perform tests on all Israelis returning from abroad.

Almost NIS 2 million was donated by Israelis to the orphaned 4-year-old twins of coronavirus victim Tamar Peretz-Levy of Lod, who passed away overnight Monday. The couple went through years of infertility before the twins were born and tragically, the father passed away from a heart attack shortly after their birth.

Israel’s Health Ministry has ordered dozens of experimental antimalarial medications which may be effective in treating COVID-19 and are already being administered to coronavirus patients in ICU units, a Yediot Aharonot report said on Wednesday.

IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi and two top IDF generals tested negative for the coronavirus, the IDF stated on Wednesday. However, all three will remain in quarantine for the rest of the week.

הרמטכ"ל אביב כוכבי נכנס לבידודhttps://t.co/wXbo3UfTs4
(צילום: יונתן זינדל, פלאש ) pic.twitter.com/h6ae8kunyy

— עכשיו 14 (@Now14Israel) March 31, 2020

Drive-through testing centers for COVID-19 opened on Wednesday in Ashdod and Rahat.

מתחם "היבדק וסע" נייד מגיע למודיעיןhttps://t.co/P0c2PSDkxL
(צילום: ישי ראוכברגר דוברות מד"א) pic.twitter.com/HNJxBcbPgu

— עכשיו 14 (@Now14Israel) March 31, 2020

Rahat is a Bedouin city near Be’er Sheva with a population of 69,000. It currently has only 4 confirmed cases of the coronavirus but the number belies the fact that there has been very minimal testing in Arab areas.

At the request of Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion, a drive-through testing center will be set up in east Jerusalem to increase the amount of testing in the Arab part of the city. Construction will begin on Wednesday and testing is expected to begin on Thursday.

MDA staff at a drive-through testing station in a northern Arab Israeli town engaged in a light moment amidst the seriousness of the coronavirus crisis: