Middle East: resurgence of the coronavirus in Israel and the Palestinian Territories

Covid-19 tests are carried out on Palestinian workers near Hebron, April 7, 2020. REUTERS / Mussa Qawasma

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For more than three weeks now, Israel has faced a resurgence of Covid-19. The number of cases, less than twenty a day at the end of May, rose to more than 450 on Tuesday 23 June. Contagion has also resumed in the Palestinian Territories where nearly 180 new cases were identified yesterday. And on both sides, the authorities are starting to put in place containment measures.

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With our correspondent in the Middle East, Guilhem Delteil

As of last Saturday, when the first figures showing an increase in the Palestinian Territories were published, the situation was described as "  dangerous  " by the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mohamed Shtayyeh. In an attempt to halt this increase, his government has announced the closure of the Hebron Governorate, which includes the majority of new cases: only goods are allowed to enter or leave.

Economic cost

Mohamed Shtayyeh also called for limiting travel between Israel and the Territories , whether for professional or personal reasons. But despite a continuous increase in the number of cases for more than three weeks, the Israeli government, which controls the opening of the crossing points, has been more reluctant to reintroduce travel restrictions that have an economic cost.

Reactivation of tracing

Finally, this Tuesday evening, after registering the highest number of new cases in 24 hours in two months, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu announced a new containment for two foci of the pandemic: the city of Elad as a whole and some districts of Tiberias. The Minister of Health said he did not want a new complete containment of the country but the restrictions could be extended to other cities. And the government wants to reactivate the tracing of telephones to trace the course of the contaminated people.

► Read also: Israel and the Palestinian Territories: between cooperation and division around the coronavirus

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  • Coronavirus
  • Israel
  • Palestinian territories
  • Confinement
  • Health and Medicine

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