Join our Community

Support ToI and remove all ads

Learn more

English
Français
עברית

Get The Daily Edition
Account
Sign In
- Sign in
- Join our Community

Open Search form

Israel & the Region
Jewish Times
Israel Inside
Tech Israel
Real Estate Israel
The Blogs
Podcasts
Video
Newsletters
Partners

Input search

English
Français
עברית

Latest Articles
Latest Alerts
Israel & the Region
Jewish Times
Israel Inside
Tech Israel
Real Estate Israel
The Blogs
Podcasts
Video
Newsletters
Partners
Community
- Join our community
- Sign in
- About The Times of Israel
- Advertise on The Times of Israel
- Contact us
- Download our App
  - For IOS users
  - For Android users
- Get the Daily Edition
- Follow us
- © 2026 The Times of Israel , All Rights Reserved
  
  Terms and conditions Privacy policy

Input search

Battling COVID: Weekly Update

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Facebook
Twitter

View previous edition

View next edition

Vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19 are seen inside a freezer in Cali, Colombia, amid the novel coronavirus pandemic on February 19, 2021. (Luis ROBAYO / AFP)

Pfizer CEO: 3rd dose of vaccine likely necessary 6-12 months after first 2 doses

After that, predicts Albert Bourla, COVID-19 inoculations will become an annual affair; says bringing down pool of people susceptible to virus crucial to halting pandemic

Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccines arrive at a Clalit vaccination center in Jerusalem, on January 4, 2021. (Olivier Fitoussi/ Flash90)

Israel closes long-term COVID-19 vaccine deals with Pfizer and Moderna

A young Israeli receives a COVID-19 vaccine injection, at a Clalit vaccination center in Holon, February 4, 2021. (Chen Leopold/Flash90)

Israeli pediatricians back vaccinating under-16s when Pfizer gets go-ahead

By ToI Staff and AFP

From the blogs

Sarah Tuttle-Singer

I saw more people smiling in 15 minutes than I saw in an entire year

With masks now off, I feel gratitude….big enough to contain the misery and the terror and the boredom and the loneliness of this past year

Illustrative: Israelis at a No-Masks outdoor dance party for COVID-19 vaccinated guests only, at the Tel Shifon Winery, in Kibbutz Ortal, northern Golan Heights, March 19, 2021. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)

Israel lifts outdoor mask mandate, fully reopens schools

Face coverings still required indoors; Health Ministry recommends wearing masks at large outdoor gatherings

Israelis throwing face masks as they celebrate the end of the mask mandate outdoors in Jerusalem, on April 18, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

‘Very strange, very nice’: Israelis shed masks outdoors after vaccine victory

By Guillaume LAVALLÉE and Michael Blum

Israeli air force aerobatic team fly during a military training for the upcoming Israel's 73rd Independence day in Jerusalem, on April 12, 2021 (Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

'We are a rich country'

Israel at 73: How the tech sector saved the economy from the worst of COVID

By Shoshanna Solomon

Nation seems to be winning virus battle, with economy hit, not shattered; political deadlock, inequality, unemployment and creaking infrastructure are wars still waiting to be won

Analysis

The Year of the Introvert

I have a confession: I don’t know if I’m ready to take my mask off yet. And it’s not because I’m worried about the virus

A medical worker wearing PPE (personal protective equipment) takes a swab sample from a woman during a mass testing event at a sport complex in Bangkok on April 17, 2021, after the recent outbreak of coronavirus cases in Thailand. (Mladen ANTONOV / AFP)

How does the coronavirus compare with other deadly viruses?

By AFP

The pandemic has killed more people than most, but not all, other viral epidemics in the 20th and 21st centuries

In this April 13, 2021 file photo, the body of a person who died of COVID-19 is brought for cremation at the Vasai crematory in Palghar, near Mumbai, India (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

Worldwide COVID-19 death toll tops a staggering 3 million

By AP and ToI Staff

The Wuhan Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market, where the coronavirus is believed to have initially spread, seen January 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)

Report: Wuhan Huanan market was identified as pandemic risk 5 years before COVID

By ToI Staff and Agencies

Virologist tells The Telegraph he was given a tour by Chinese health officials in 2014 to see ‘where a disease could emerge’

Illustrative: Taglit-Birthright participants visit at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem on August 18, 2014. (Flash90/File)

Israel to let tour groups in for 1st time since pandemic began, starting May 23

‘It’s time Israel’s unique advantage as a safe and healthy country starts to assist’ in the recovery of its economy, says tourism minister; PCR and antibody tests required

Israeli students wearing face masks return to school in Tel Aviv on April 18, 2021. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Education Ministry wants to keep schools open through summer

A shipment of AstraZenaca coronavirus vaccines, intended for use by Palestinians. (courtesy)

Palestinians receive 72,000 AstraZeneca doses to boost stuttering vaccine drive

By Aaron Boxerman

Just 3.44% of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have received a coronavirus vaccine, even as restrictions lifted in Israel

Members of the Palestinian security forces perform checks on the street after a lockdown was ordered in Gaza Strip until April 11, 2021, to curb the spreading of coronavirus. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90

Gaza sees record 23 deaths from coronavirus, marking pandemic’s deadliest day

By Aaron Boxerman

Palestinians leaving Jerusalem's Old City outside Damascus Gate following noon prayers on Friday, April 16, 2021 (Aaron Boxerman/The Times of Israel)

Reporter's Notebook

In Jerusalem’s Old City, Palestinians celebrate return to a near-normal Ramadan

By Aaron Boxerman

After a traumatic year of shuttered mosques and a deserted al-Aqsa, worshipers and vendors were overjoyed to return to routine, though visitor numbers remained far lower than usual

Muslims pray during the first dawn prayers of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, around the Kaaba, the cubic building at the Grand Mosque, as they keep social distancing to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, April 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

Muslims mark Ramadan in pandemic’s shadow amid new outbreaks

By amr nabil and Niniek Karmini

Magen David Adom workers outside a nursing home in Jerusalem on October 12, 2020 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

16 retirement home residents contract COVID-19, most of them vaccinated

All are currently asymptomatic; Health Ministry will investigate if the residents were infected with a variant strain

Coronavirus czar Nachman Ash at Ben Gurion Airport on March 1, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

Israel has not reached herd immunity, Indian variant a concern, says virus czar

Medical technicians test passengers for COVID-19 at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on March 8, 2021. (Flash90)

7 cases of Indian COVID variant detected in Israel

More Headlines

Israelis wearing face masks walk in downtown Jerusalem on January 21, 2021, during the third national coronavirus lockdown. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

Israeli hospital reports 65% drop in serious asthma cases due to mask-wearing

Illustrative: Arriving passengers walk past a sign in the arrivals area at Heathrow Airport in London, Jan. 26, 2021. (Matt Dunham/AP)

Raising inequity worries, WHO opposes proof of vaccination for travelers

By AFP

Illustrative -- Israeli students wearing face masks return to a school in Yad Mordechai, March 7, 2021. (Flash90)

Study: 1 in 5 Israeli kids have clinical anxiety symptoms amid pandemic

People wait in line to receive a coronavirus vaccine at a Clalit vaccination center in Jerusalem on January 21, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Unvaccinated public servants can be fired if they refuse virus tests — report

View Edition by Date

March	April 2021					May
Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa	Su
			1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30

The Times of Israel

Daily Edition

Free to Your Inbox

The email is either missing or invalid.

By signing up, you agree to our terms You hereby accept The Times of Israel Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and you agree to receive the latest news & offers from The Times of Israel and its partners or ad sponsors.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Israel & the Region
Jewish Times
Israel Inside
Tech Israel
Real Estate Israel
The Blogs
podcasts
video

terms and conditions
privacy policy
about us
advertise with us
Jobs at The Times of Israel
contact us

Community

Join our community
Sign in

Get the Daily Edition

Enter your email address

Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram Follow us on Whatsapp Follow us on X Follow us on Youtube Follow us on Telegram Follow us on Threads Follow us on Bluesky

© 2026 The Times of Israel, all rights reserved

Concept, design & development by

Developed by

Powered by

Never miss breaking news on Israel

Get notifications to stay updated

You're subscribed

Register for free
and continue reading

Registering allows you to manage your newsletters and alerts and helps us improve your experience. It takes just a few seconds.
Already registered? Enter your email to sign in.

Email address

Please use the following structure: example@domain.com

Or Continue with

By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Once registered, you’ll receive our Daily Edition email for free.

Send me The Times of Israel Daily Edition

Register to continue

Email address

Or Continue with

Log in to continue

Email address

Something went wrong.
Please try again in a few minutes..

Sign in or Register

Email address * Password *

Incorrect password. Please try again or choose an option below.

I forgot my password / Send me a sign in link

Or Continue with

check your email

Check your email

We sent an email to you at .

It has a link that will sign you in.

Click the link in that email to complete your registration.