Netanyahu calls virus ‘pandemic’ as Israel plans restrictions on some US flights
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the coronavirus was a pandemic more severe than any disease outbreak in the past century, as a senior official said Israel was likely hours away from placing restrictions on flights arriving from some parts of the United States.
“First of all, this is a global pandemic, whether the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) calls it such or not. It is a matter of days or hours. It is doubtful whether there has been a similar pandemic in the last 100 years. It seems that the rate of infection is greater than we figured.”
He went on: “The assumption that the virus will disappear or evaporate in hot weather is unproven. At the moment, this has no basis that we can build on. The virus is currently spreading to Africa. There is no vaccine and anti-viral drugs are ineffective. Economies are starting to be hurt. Governments are ordering their gates closed. This is important for the supply of products for all economies. Nobody knows how the pandemic will end.”
The director-general of the Health Ministry, Moshe Bar Siman-Tov, indicated Saturday night that Israel was about to place restrictions on flights arriving from some parts of the US. Israel would not take action against all flights from the US, but would act on a state-by-state basis, he said.
Specifying flights from New York, Washington, DC, and California, he said a decision would be announced later Saturday or Sunday.
