Palestinians record another 553 virus cases; 20% of tests returning positive

The Palestinian Authority Health Ministry announces 553 new cases of the novel coronavirus among Palestinians today.

Around 9,220 Palestinians are currently infected with the virus, according to the PA. But the numbers indicate that the actual community spread could be much higher.

According to publicly available data provided by the PA, around 20% of coronavirus tests in the past week have come back positive. By comparison, Israel has seen a national average of around 7%. It was not clear whether or not the PA Health Ministry was including East Jerusalem in that count, as most testing in East Jerusalem goes through Israeli health providers. If not, the percentage of positive tests could be much higher.

Gaza has seen a slight increase in cases since the return of over 1,800 Gazans through the Rafah crossing with Egypt in early August. The coastal enclave has so far managed to avoid a mass outbreak, as all new arrivals are obligated to remain in quarantine centers for at least 21 days to prevent community spread of the virus. Of those in quarantine, around 33 were found to have been infected with the novel coronavirus, raising the total number of cases in Gaza to 36.

According to the PA, 25,577 Palestinians have been infected with the novel coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic; 147 have died.

— Aaron Boxerman