Israel’s Health Ministry on Motzei Shabbos announced that the first case of monkeypox in Israel has been confirmed in a 30-year-old man.

The patient, who began suffering from skin lesions after returning from western Europe, is hospitalized in Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv in mild condition.

The monkeypox virus, which until recently was only seen in Africa, has spread to at least eight European countries as well as the United States, Canada, and Australia.

New York State health officials announced late Friday that a New York City resident tested positive for the virus.

Many of the reported cases have been diagnosed in people who identify with the “Toeiva” community.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)