Prof. Ronni Gamzi, Israel’s newly appointed coronavirus czar, presented his new “Magen Yisrael” plan to reign in the continuously rising coronavirus infection rate in Israel in a press conference on Tuesday evening. Gamzu said that the country’s contact tracing program is “at the heart of stopping the pandemic” and will now be transferred to the IDF which has “the technology, the tools and the ability” to carry the program out efficiently. Gamzu reassured Israelis that his plan will forge a “new contract” between the government and Israeli citizens and there will be an end to the implementation of illogical restrictions that harm the economy. “We will limit the restrictions as much as possible,” Gamzu promised but added that wearing masks is vital, presenting graphs proving the effectiveness of masks in staving off infections and a chart that showed that 70% of Israelis are wearing masks which he said is good but not good enough. He added that Israelis must also improve their social distancing since Israelis are being infected with the virus at gatherings. Another part of Gamzu’s plan is allowing local authorities more autonomy to institute coronavirus restrictions as appropriate for their localities. The new system, called the “traffic light” system will allow “green” cities with low morbidity rates to open or close local businesses such as restaurants and theaters as they see fit. “Yellow” cities that are at risk of a major outbreak would receive funding to help decrease infections and “red” cities will continue to be managed at a national level with the close assistance of the IDF’s Home Front Command. Other aspects of Gamzu’s plan include increasing tests, the formation of a professional panel of experts for advice and adjustment of the plan as needed, more effective enforcement, and increased transparency. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

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