Bennett warns suicides could surpass virus deaths if lockdown kept too long

Defense Minister Naftali Bennett warns Israel may see more suicides than deaths from the coronavirus if the country’s lockdown is kept in place for too long.

“We have to understand the massive distress of those who won’t have enough money to pay their rent — we may have more suicides than deaths from coronavirus,” he says.

Bennett calls for the government to work quickly to reopen businesses as quickly as possible by performing large numbers of tests in order to identify possible sources of outbreaks as well as places where more normal life can resume.

The defense minister says the country is generally doing a good job in combating the disease, resulting in a relatively low death rate of 0.3% so far.

“We’re in a good place,” he says.

— Judah Ari Gross