Health Ministry officials are bracing for a spike in daily coronavirus diagnoses, saying that reinstating some of the restrictions placed on public life when Israel was emerging from its third lockdown in spring may be inevitable.
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Israel has recorded 841,899 COVID-19 cases since the global pandemic erupted in March 2020, including 6,429 deaths.
As of Thursday, there were 1,990 active cases, with 29 patients in serious condition.
Of the 59,113 Israelis screened for the virus on Wednesday, 308 (0.6%) tested positive. Israel's "R" coefficient – the virus' reproduction rate – stood at 1.74.
The Health Ministry warned that at the current infection rate, daily coronavirus diagnoses, currently standing at around 300, will jump to 500-600 by next week.
The majority of the corona resurgence in Israel at this time has been traced back to the Delta variant. The latest virus mutation, first identified in India, is more contagious than other variants and may be better able to infect those who have been immunized.
Since the national vaccination campaign was launched in late December, 5,169,775 Israelis have been inoculated.
Channel 12 News reported Wednesday that Israel is trying to broker a COVID-19 vaccine swap deal with Britain, seeking to give the UK some of its Pfizer vaccines that are due to expire at the end of July, in exchange for vaccines that the UK is slated to receive from Pfizer in September.
The Health Ministry has also reportedly approached the American pharma giant to learn if it can use the vaccines it already has past their expiration date.
Without a clear answer, the vaccination campaign could come to a halt in mid-July.
The spike in morbidity, which has seen a growing number of communities across the country designated as "red" under the Health Ministry's "stoplight ranking," has prompted health officials to consider reinstating the use of the "Green Pass" system to tell apart Israeli who have been vaccinated and those who have not, as well as the "Purple Badge" system which sets certain requirements on businesses to allow them to operate.
Also on Wednesday, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked toured the Ben-Gurion International Airport, where the resumption of regular operations is believed to have been a significant factor in triggering the latest outbreak.
Shaked warned that flights in and out of Israel could again be halted if morbidity continues to rise.
"The situation at Ben-Gurion Airport is a major concern," she told reporters. "The simple solution is to shut down the airport. With the vaccines at play, however, the current situation is different than it was a few months ago, so we're trying to keep the airport open. However, if the morbidity rises, then the flights will stop.
"Right now, we're trying to maintain the normal routine," she said.
She further urged the public to adhere to the government overseas travel limitations, which bar visiting countries experiencing major outbreaks.
"If you don't absolutely have to travel – don't," she said. "Anyone visiting these countries without the necessary permit will be fined."
The fine for violating the government's corona-era travel restrictions currently stands at 5,000 shekels ($1,530).
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