DUBAI: Israel’s Interior Minister, Arye Deri, called for increased law enforcement in Arab areas and for the evacuation of coronavirus patients to Israel Defense Forces run hotels, ahead of Ramadan, Israeli daily The Jerusalem Post reported on Sunday.
Deri, who was appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to create a plan to combat the spread of coronavirus in the Haredi and Arab sectors, spoke with Arab Mayors and several Knesset members to prepare for Ramadan.
“We are at the start of the month of Ramadan, a month in which the Health Ministry's guidelines must be kept with increased discipline as people may want to hold large gatherings which could lead to mass infection,” Deri was cited by the paper.
Israeli officials reported concern on Saturday of the spread of COVID-19 Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem.
On Saturday morning, East Jerusalem recorded its first confirmed fatality from COVID-19, with the death of a 78-year-old woman.
According to the Israeli Health Ministry, dozens of cases of the virus have been recorded in East Jerusalem, where many residents live in densely populated neighborhoods and tight living quarters.
