In Israel, almost all corona cases examined with genome sequencing show the delta variant of the coronavirus.

The Ministry of Health announced this on request from the FAZ.

Although only 128 delta cases were detected between 13 and 26 June of 1,168 infected people, these are almost all cases genetically examined so far.

Since genome sequencing takes around ten days to detect mutations, a significant increase in the delta numbers is expected, according to a spokesman.

Jochen Stahnke

Political correspondent for Israel, the Palestinian Territories and Jordan based in Tel Aviv.

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    Of the 1168 infected people, 555 were over 16 years old, of whom 437 were twice vaccinated.

    Therefore, the possibility of diminishing immunity in cases of fully vaccinated people is also being investigated, according to the Ministry of Health.

    In Israel, the vaccination campaign began more than six months ago.

    "In the past week, the number of people who tested positive in Israel has increased," said Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Sunday evening, "but there has not been a corresponding increase in the number of people admitted to hospitals - but we need to know that the Delta variant infects people who have been vaccinated . "

    The number of cases is still low

    The health situation in Israel is still considered stable, and there are warnings against panic-mongering. On the one hand, the Israeli case numbers are still very low in an international comparison. 114 new infections were reported for Sunday. On the other hand, very few of the infected people are sick, and if so, then only slightly so far. The number of hospitalizations (currently 44) has not increased so far. This is mainly attributed to the high effectiveness of the Pfizer Biontech vaccine and the fact that around 90 percent of the more vulnerable population over 50 years of age in Israel is vaccinated.

    In addition, around half of the newly infected people are children under the age of 17, whose infections are mostly asymptomatic. On Monday, Bennett called on young Israelis between the ages of 12 and 15 to get vaccinated. According to reports, vaccination offers in this age group are rather hesitant. There are still enough vaccines, so Bennett in a video, but the effectiveness will soon expire. "The last day you can get the first dose vaccinated is July 9th," said Bennett. The vaccine expired three weeks later.

    The Israeli government has so far refrained from further restrictions on public life. In addition to the reintroduction of the mask requirement indoors, it was decided to monitor the home quarantine of infected people more closely. In addition, the so-called Corona cabinet was reactivated. On Sunday the ministers decided that every Israeli over 16 years of age when traveling abroad must sign a declaration not to visit any of the countries classified as “red”. Without a special permit, this would result in fines, reported the “Maariv” newspaper. Failure to comply with domestic quarantine in the event of infection and the return journey from countries heavily affected by corona with lax checks at the airport in individual cases are considered to be the cause of the recent spread of the virus.

    Bennett gave the motto: "Masks instead of restrictions - vaccinations instead of lockdowns". At the same time, the Corona cabinet decided on a plan to carry out genome sequencing for all corona tests on people entering Israel.