Outgoing health minister Yaakov Litzman appears to suggest the Israeli government overreacted to the coronavirus.
“I also thought so, that the panic was overblown, and when the director [of the Health Ministry] said he fears tens of thousands would die, I yelled at the cabinet meeting, in his presence and in the presence of the ministers, that it wouldn’t be. It’s just exaggerated,” Litzman tells the Kan public broadcaster.
“But it doesn’t matter. The prime minister accepted this hyperbole and responded to the fears of the [Health Ministry’s] director [Moshe Bar Siman-Tov], and operated according to that — and I can’t say I have many claims against him, because overall the situation is excellent,” he says, but stresses that just 272 died rather than the tens of thousands predicted.
Litzman himself contracted and recovered from COVID-19. He is now set to take over the Housing Ministry. Bar Siman-Tov has resigned from the Health Ministry.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
