Tel Aviv, Jan. 15, (dpa/GNA) – The number of new infections with the coronavirus remains very high in Israel, with a further 9,172 cases registered within the past 24 hours, according to the country’s Health Ministry on Friday.
This was the fourth day in a row that the number of cases exceeded 9,000; so far it has only been higher five times. The record of 9,710 new infections was set last Monday.
By comparison, in Germany – with a population nine times the size of Israel’s just over 9 million – 22,368 new coronavirus infections were reported within the past 24 hours on Friday.
Israel is in the middle of a third wave of coronavirus infections. For a week now, a two-week hard lockdown has been in effect, with measures such as restrictions on freedom of movement.
People are only allowed to leave their own house or flat within a radius of 1 kilometre.
Israel’s Coronavirus Commissioner Nachman Ash has already announced a lockdown extension of one week.
Experts expect the vaccination campaign, which began almost a month ago, to have an effect soon. A little more than 2 million people in Israel have received the first dose so far.
GNA