The Chinese ambassador to Israel, Du Wei, was found dead in his official residence in Hertzliya on Sunday morning, Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed.

A large number of police forces arrived at the scene and opened up an investigation. There were no signs of violence and police and Magen David Adom believe that Wei died of a heart attack.

Du Wei, 57, who entered his position only four months ago as the coronavirus pandemic began spreading throughout the world, is married and has one child but he was currently in Israel alone. When he arrived in Israel in February to fill the position, he first self-quarantined in his residence for two weeks.

Prior to serving as the ambassador of Israel, Wei was the Chinese ambassador to Ukraine.

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שגריר סין החדש בישראל, DU Wei, יגיש את כתב האמנתו בפני הנשיא ב-23/3. היום הגיש את העתק כתב ההאמנה אצל רח"ט הטקס @AmbMeronReuben, ונפגש עם סמנכ״ל אסיה @GiladCohen_.

הסמנכ״ל כהן איחל לשגריר הצלחה בתפקידו והביע את הערכתה של 🇮🇱 כלפי הממשל והעם 🇨🇳 במאבקם בהמשך התפשטות וירוס הקורונה. pic.twitter.com/kW9H4NRpnG

— משרד החוץ (@IsraelHebrew) March 3, 2020

“ZAKA volunteers in Tel Aviv were called to tend to the body of the Chinese ambassador to Israel, Du Wei, who was found dead in his home on Rechov Chavatzelet HaSharon in Hertzliya,” ZAKA Tel Aviv wrote on Sunday.

https://twitter.com/zakatelaviv/status/1261941532296392704?s=20

“The volunteers are ensuring kavod ha’meis and assisting the police forensic team in investigating the incident and gathering evidence. The body will be transferred to the Institue of Forensic Medicine for investigation and identification.”

Only three days ago, Wei published a response to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s warning to Israel on his visit last week not to allow China to take control of Israeli infrastructure, with some news reports saying that the main goal of Pompeo’s visit was to warn Israel to reduce ties with China.

Pompeo stressed that China cannot be trusted, amid persistent rumors that China had wasted valuable time by initially delaying reports on the coronavirus pandemic and had hidden and/or falsified data about morbidity and mortality rates. Pompeo also stated at the beginning of the month that there is “enormous evidence” that the coronavirus pandemic originated in a laboratory in Wuhan, China.

Wei wrote a lengthy response to Pompeo’s claims, which was published in The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday: “Without China’s resolute actions, transparent cooperation and the huge sacrifice of its people, the epidemic would have been far more disastrous,” Wei wrote.

“While everyone is engaged in the fight of the epidemic, we should also deal with another common enemy: the “infodemic.” For example, some people keep questioning the transparency of China’s data. China is a responsible stakeholder, and it is not afraid of telling the truth. The empty hospital beds, the closing of quarantine sites, the steaming factories and the lively shopping malls are corroborating China’s data. By cross-checking with the situation in hospitals and the recounts of medical staff, the WHO-China Joint Mission concludes that they are not seeing anything that suggests manipulation of numbers.”

“Some media are still using words like “China virus” or “Wuhan pneumonia,” and some are even selling the conspiracy theory that the virus was made in a Chinese laboratory. Experts have pointed out that the epidemic first breaking out in China does not necessarily mean the virus originated from China. No lab in the world is capable of manufacturing this virus.

“The Talmud says, ‘The entire community sits under the same star’ (Pesachim 94a). At the critical moment of China’s fight against the epidemic, President Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israelis from all walks of life extended their sympathy and support to China. We are deeply moved and will never forget.

“The Chinese and the Jewish nations have endured profound sufferings throughout history, but we have all risen after setbacks and are marching toward national rejuvenation. The fight against the epidemic will only showcase and enhance the resilience in our national characters and bring us to an even brighter future. I sincerely hope we will soon prevail over the epidemic in Israel and around the world.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)