2nd Israeli from ‘Diamond Princess’ tests positive for coronavirus
Panic spreads as Israel closes borders to visitors from S. Korea, Japan
A second Israeli who returned to Ben-Gurion Airport on Friday from the Diamond Princess docked in Yokohama has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer. All 11 Israelis evacuated from the cruise ship remain in quarantine at the Ramat Gan hospital since arriving on the charter flight.
The medical center confirmed the individual did not contract the virus in Israel.
The news came as hundreds of Israelis have called a hotline for people worried they may have contracted the contagion, according to Magen David Adom. The Health Ministry has canceled upcoming trips to Poland for thousands of students, and only Israeli nationals will be allowed to participate in Friday’s Tel Aviv Marathon.
Israel has also issued a ban on travelers from South Korea and Japan, and cautioned Israelis not to go to those countries due to the spread of the epidemic.
Panic erupted across Israel on Sunday following an announcement on Saturday that half of the 18 South Korean pilgrims who toured Israel from February 8 to 15 have been diagnosed with coronavirus and may have been contagious while here. The South Koreans traveled across the country, and visited numerous churches and holy sites in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Jericho, as well as Masada and other popular tourist destinations.
At the start of the week, 200 Israeli students were placed in isolation after reporting being exposed to the South Koreans.
“We are prepared to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Israel,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated during an emergency meeting at the Health Ministry in Tel Aviv Sunday in an effort to calm the country. “We are conducting assessments every day, and I will appoint a team of ministers to meet on a daily basis to address this major challenge.”
He said that the government is constantly reviewing its policy and adjusting it to adapt to evolving circumstances, including monitoring entry into Israel from other countries.
On Sunday, the Health Ministry sent a memo to citizens sharing where the South Koreans went and reviewing guidelines for people who came into contact with the tourists, including putting themselves under a 14-day period of isolation.
The ministry also recommends that if signs of illness – fever over 38°C, cough or other respiratory symptoms develop – individuals should seek medical attention.
The Health Ministry added that as of Sunday anyone who has been in South Korea or Japan for the last 14 days must be in house isolation until 14 days have elapsed from the time of their departure from these countries.
Japan and South Korea were added to the list of countries including China, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Thailand that the ministry has labeled as contagious and requires Israelis returning from to enter quarantine.
As of Sunday, the entry of non-residents or citizens of Israel who were in South Korea during the 14 days prior to their arrival in Israel is forbidden. As of Monday, this directive will also apply for those arriving from Japan.
In addition, anyone who has been in Taiwan, Italy or Australia for the past 14 days and who develops disease symptoms should be checked according to the guidelines listed on the Health Ministry’s website (health.gov.il/ English).
“Today, we added Australia
and Italy to the list of countries from which returning travelers will be required to enter quarantine,” the prime minister said. “As necessary, we will add other countries to the list.
“I said that over-preparation is better than lack of preparation,” he continued. “To date, Israel has been more stringent than any other country, and we will continue to do what is necessary to prevent the spread of the virus in Israel.”
He called on the public to show “maximum responsibility” by adhering to the policies that the Health Ministry lays out.
“It must be clear: Anyone who is required to be in isolation must be,” Health Minister Ya’acov Litzman reiterated Sunday. He said that now is not the time for travel abroad.
Some Knesset members and candidates lashed out at the government over its handling of the coronavirus.
Gesher head Orly Levy-Abekasis accused the country of not being prepared to handle the crisis despite its “supposed regular preparation” for attacks – including biological warfare attacks – by terrorist regimes or hostile nations.
Former president of the Israeli Medical Association, Prof. Leonid Eidelman, who is running on Yisrael Beytenu’s list, also attacked the establishment: “The corona panic seems to be gaining momentum,” he said. “Talk about forced hospitalization, eliminating various tourists or certain theories of biological warfare may be helpful to some politicians, but they will not help the public in real time.
“Speaking as someone who knows from the inside, the Israeli health system suffers from the highest over occupancy rate among OECD countries and would not be able to hospitalize these sick people even if police forced them to be hospitalized,” he concluded.
President Reuven Rivlin, however, did not cancel his diplomatic plans as a result of the virus. He arrived in Australia on Friday and is expected to spend a week there visiting Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.
Following the instructions of the Health Ministry regarding those returning from Australia, Rivlin’s spokesperson gave the following statement: “The entourage from Beit HaNasi in Australia is not expected to change its planned schedule at present of the president’s official visit. The director-general is in touch with the director-general of the ministry on the subject and we will update on any change that is necessary.”
The MDA hotline that launched Saturday night under the guidance of the Health Ministry is reachable through MDA’s 101 hotline and is meant to support the growing number of Israelis who have been in contact with a coronavirus patient, who is suspected of being infected with the virus, or has symptoms such as fever, cough or other respiratory symptoms.
When a person calls, a medic or paramedic answers the call and determines whether to join a doctor into the call, who will then decide how to proceed with medical care. Options for next steps include sending an ambulance to evacuate the patient to a hospital or sending a paramedic to the person’s home to take a blood sample for evaluation at Sheba Medical Center’s laboratory.
In addition, according to MDA, so far dozens of paramedics have undergone dedicated training on how to collect samples from potential patients in order to test for coronavirus. They have also been trained in staying fully protected against the infection themselves while taking these samples.
On Sunday, MDA trained an additional 70 MDA paramedics at its Paramedic Education Center in Ramat Gan. Participants practiced taking patient samples while wearing anti-contamination kits.
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan warned Sunday of potential election interference that would somehow be caused by the virus.
“I have instructed the police to prepare for a situation in which the coronavirus could disrupt the coming elections, even in the form of fake news being spread that could cause panic in some areas, causing some to stay home on election day,” Erdan said, noting that such election interference would be considered a criminal offense.
The Israel Airports Authority called an emergency meeting during which its head, Pinchas Idan, informed staff that Ben-Gurion Airport has implemented a hiring freeze until the summer season and that there would be no raises or promotions until further notice. Some staff, he said, would likely have to reduce their hours to part time.
“During this time we must work hard and carefully,” he said, “and hope things will improve soon.”
In addition, the Education Ministry was forced to cancel 29 upcoming school trips to Poland for some 3,087 students who were scheduled to travel between February 23 and March 4, until further notice.
The Tel Aviv Marathon, which is scheduled to take place on Friday, will continue, according to the Tel Aviv Municipality. However, only Israelis will take part in the event. The Jerusalem Marathon is also facing possible cancellation.
Meanwhile, officials in Seoul and Tokyo summoned Israeli diplomats to protest Jerusalem’s actions. Israeli Ambassador to Japan Yaffa Ben-Ari and Charge D’affaires in South Korea Rasha Atamny were both told by the governments in their postings that they view the travel ban with severity.
The ban on South Koreans entering Israel began on Sunday and the block on Japanese nationals will go into effect at 8 a.m. on Monday. Israel has also banned entry from tourists who were in China, Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand and Singapore in recent weeks.
The South Korean government filed a formal complaint to Israel on Sunday morning, saying they “demanded that such an incident not occur again,” referring to Korean Air flight KE957 which landed at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport at 7:30 p.m. Saturday before the Immigration and Population Authority had made a decision on whether to let Korean residents enter Israel. An ad hoc decision was made concerning this specific flight that 130 Korean passengers would not be allowed to disembark and enter Israel, and the flight returned to Seoul. Twelve Israelis were allowed off the plane and transported home in Magen David Adom ambulances.
The refusal to admit the passengers followed a sharp increase in coronavirus cases in South Korea on Saturday, when local health authorities said the number of infected people had doubled to 433, as well as confirmation that nine South Korean nationals tested positive for the virus after returning from Israel earlier this month.
The Airports Authority announced Sunday that it made arrangements for the South Korean passengers who were unable to depart on Saturday night’s flight back to their country. According to the authority, passengers departed on commercial flights with foreign airlines that had connections through third countries.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz said his ministry “is taking the necessary steps to ensure the public’s health while keeping up the important relations with Asian countries. We will continue to act in coordination with the relevant authorities in Israel.”
Katz spoke following a Foreign Ministry situation assessment meeting on Sunday, in which members of Israel’s delegations in China, Japan and South Korea, lamented that Israel’s response has harmed relations with those countries.
Foreign Ministry director-general Yuval Rotem responded that the health of the Israeli public is the government’s priority, though Israel will try minimize harm to diplomatic relations and continue an open dialogue with the relevant countries.
Rotem plans to meet with the South Korean ambassador to Israel on Sunday afternoon.
The Health Ministry website briefly said that Israel would be totally closing its borders to all foreign nationals, but then deleted the message Saturday night.
The Foreign Ministry decided on Sunday that it would send more staff to a command room at Ben-Gurion Airport to help tourists who are banned from entering Israel.
An additional 1,000 tourists from South Korea currently traveling in Israel have been instructed to avoid public places, and remain in isolation in their hotels.
The travel warning to South Korea, Japan and Thailand, issued on Sunday, comes in light of the increasing number of people with coronavirus. Israelis in Japan are advised to maintain good hygiene. Israelis in South Korea are advised to leave the country. The travel warning for Thailand gives the authorities credit for responding well to the crisis, but says that caution is advised.
Israel has long sought to have South Korea remove its permanent travel warning its citizens against visiting Israel due to the security situation, in order to boost economic ties between the two countries.
Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report. •