Virus toll climbs to 834 with 10 new deaths; Blue and White minister infected

The Health Ministry announced on Sunday evening that 10 people had died of COVID-19 since midnight, bringing the national death toll to 834.

The total number of coronavirus infections since the start of the pandemic stands at 102,380, a rise of 720 since midnight, with 398 serious cases and 115 patients on ventilators.

Among the new cases diagnosed on Sunday was Immigration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata of the Blue and White party. Tamano-Shata met with other party members on Friday, the Kan public broadcaster reported, sparking concerns other officials could be infected.

There are 22,045 active cases and the number of patients to recover from the virus is at 79,501.

Medical personnel administered 10,963 virus tests on Saturday, the ministry reported, without providing the percentage of positive results.

Over 500 Israelis have died of COVID-19 since July 1, compared with 320 from March to June.

A bone of contention between top officials in recent days has been Israel’s policy toward an annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage by ultra-Orthodox Jews to Ukraine.

Ronni Gamzu, the government’s top official in charge of the coronavirus response, fears the pilgrimage could cause a spike in infections if thousands of Hasidic Jews board planes to Ukraine and gather for events around the Uman gravesite of Rabbi Nachman, an 18th-century luminary and founder of the Bratslav Hasidic movement.

Housing Minister Yaakov Litzman of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party on Sunday called on Gamzu to resign from his post, due to his actions to thwart the pilgrimage, Channel 12 reported.

Gamzu told associates that he has no intention of leaving the position, and that he has the full backing of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the report said.

In response to a letter Gamzu sent to Ukraine’s president pleading with him to bar the pilgrimage, Litzman said, “Gamzu needs to resign.”

“I haven’t seen a situation where an official sent a letter to a president,” Litzman said. “That needs to come from a health minister or prime minister.”

Gamzu said that he had indeed sent the letter of his own accord, without Netanyahu’s knowledge, but that after the premier became aware of its contents, he did not ask Gamzu to retract the missive.

Litzman served as the previous health minister. He decided to step down from the position in April amid harsh criticism of his handling of the pandemic, which included allegations that he took part in group prayers in violation of his own ministry’s guidelines, shortly before he and his wife were infected with the virus.

In previous years, about 30,000 pilgrims, mostly from Israel, have gathered for the Jewish New Year in Uman.

This year, Rosh Hashanah begins on the evening of September 18.

A health official said Sunday that 2,000 people are believed to have already traveled to Ukraine for the holiday. It was unclear how the official had reached the figure of 2,000, or whether all of them were thought to have traveled from Israel.

Israel and Ukraine have called on Israelis not to travel to Uman next month for the pilgrimage due to the ongoing pandemic, but Kyiv will not block the option completely.

There have been concerns that even if direct flights are canceled, pilgrims will find alternative routes to the site.

Gamzu said on Saturday said that as far as he was concerned, “There will be no flights to Uman. Period.”

Gamzu reportedly said that pilgrims traveling to the Ukrainian site could bring Israel significantly closer to requiring a national shutdown, noting that the pilgrimage was “not a High Holiday and not sacred.”

He said that responsibility was now in the hands of the Civil Aviation Authority, which he said must put an end to “this madness.”

According to Channel 12 news, Litzman said the possible regulation of flights was a “slap in the face to tens of thousands of Bratslav followers.”

Last month, Ukrainian Chief Rabbi Yaakov Dov Bleich said that the Ukrainian government had agreed to let at least 5,000 people attend the pilgrimage. The quota may rise as high as 8,000, but the pilgrims will have to wear face masks in crowded places and refrain from gatherings of more than 30 people, he added.

Israeli health officials are “nervous” about what will happen when the pilgrims return, Bleich said.

Some ultra-Orthodox Jews have come under fire for not adhering to coronavirus regulations, mainly at the start of the pandemic in Israel, but also earlier this month at a wedding at an open air venue in Jerusalem that was reportedly attended by thousands.

The community has largely adhered to regulations, but has been hit especially hard, likely due to their typically large families, prayer practices, and other communal gatherings.

In a plan unveiled in recent days, Gamzu outlined restrictions to be imposed during the High Holiday period which begins next month.

The plan would only place restrictions on cities with high morbidity rates, if the rate of infection is not slowed by September 10. The restrictions will take effect starting from Rosh Hashanah, until October 11, after the Sukkot holiday.

However, Gamzu told Channel 12 news that he believed the morbidity rate would drop in time to avoid restrictions over Rosh Hashanah.

On Thursday, ministers refused for a third time to approve Gamzu’s “traffic light” plan, reportedly due to opposition from ultra-Orthodox ministers, who oppose restrictions that could shut synagogues in high infection areas.

The plan will once again come before ministers on Monday, Haaretz reported.