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Israel’s Coronavirus Roller Coaster
Israel had won the fight against Covid-19 so impressively that people doubted the disease was even real. Then came the second wave.
Israel vs. Covid-19: Part one
Israel had reason to approach the Covid-19 crisis with a certain amount of optimism. For one, it is a small country with less than 10 million citizens. It is also a youthful country, with a median citizen age of 30.5 years. Israel is also vastly experienced in emergencies. It has a world-class public health system, despite a below-average number of doctors, nurses, and beds.
It is an island — not geographically, but practically — mostly surrounded by countries that hold no diplomatic relations with it and offer no form of passage. Israel’s only entrance gate is one international airport: Ben-Gurion in Tel-Aviv. This one entrance is relatively easy to control.
The Israeli government recognized the danger of Covid-19 early on. In late January, Israel initiated an entry ban to Chinese citizens, a move that the Chinese ambassador compared to the rejection of Jewish refugees during the Holocaust. During late February and the beginning of March, the virus reached Israel by way of citizens who reentered the country from abroad. Swift action was taken to curb this impact. Every person entering the country was put in mandatory quarantine for 14 days.
Later, the government even financed and repurposed hotels into designated quarantine zones for Israeli citizens returning home. Each diagnosed person was numbered and a full report as to their whereabouts was published. Israelis even joked that one should pay close attention to the places one visits in case it all becomes public due to a positive test result.
For a moment, it appeared that Israel’s fight against Covid-19 might end with a clear victory.
There was one place where the Israeli government notably hesitated. While banning entry to many foreigners, the choice to ban U.S. citizens was debated and delayed. Those in favor of such a ban were concerned this move might harm Israel’s political and economic ties with the U.S. Eventually, it was…
