Israel's national coronavirus response coordinator, Professor Salman Zarka, warned on Thursday that Israel could find itself once again under a nationwide lockdown if the coronavirus challenges are not properly dealt with.
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"I am unable to pledge that no lockdown will be announced because things are still unfolding. Hospital staff shortages and the overwhelming of facilities are a problem, and therefore if there is a lockdown, it will be like the first one, where people would not be allowed to go more than 100 m (330 ft) from their home," he said at a press briefing.
Zarka added that this current wave "has combined the Omicron and the Delta variants, and it's still on an upward trajectory." This means he stressed, that the actual number of cases might very well be much greater than the official figure because "some of the infected are not reporting their results from the at-home tests." However, he noted that the severe cases of COVID-19 (the respiratory illness caused by the virus), is "largely limitd to those older than 60 and those not fully vaccinated."
He urged Israelis who have not had their booster shot to go get jabbed and, especially older cohorts. "This population has a higher risk of becoming sick from Omicron or Delta and then to be hospitalized under ventilators," he noted, before saying that "after two years of coronavirus waves, we are drilled and know how to learn from the previous waves. We have to protect the vulnerable and get vaccinated, as well as make sure we wear a mask."
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