Government to Weigh Toughening Lockdown as Daily Cases Hit 6,000

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will hold consultations during the coming week on tightening the current coronavirus lockdown, his office said Motzoei Shabbos, as Israel’s daily case count passed 6,000.

The talks will focus on imposing a tight and short lockdown that will allow a quick reopening of the economy, according to the statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.

Israel’s third national lockdown came into force last Sunday evening, but has yet to affect rising daily infections.

On Motzoei Shabbos, the Health Ministry said 6,004 new coronavirus cases were confirmed the previous day. Along with 2,154 cases recorded since midnight, the number of infections since the pandemic began rose to 433,799.

Israel’s death toll stood at 3,384, with some 30 new fatalities. There are currently 48,701 active cases, including 739 patients hospitalized in serious condition, with 177 of them on ventilators.

Of the 98,034 tests performed Friday, 6.1% came back positive.