At the end of the meeting, Gamzu said, "The cabinet minister expressed complete support for the framework I presented them with, and for avoiding a shutdown."

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The first working option Gamzu presented to the ministers included work to expand the infrastructure available to combat the spread of the virus in Israel. As part of that option, the IDF would perform contact tracing; the Homefront Command would enter dozens of localities; and the "traffic light" system of coding local authorities based on their coronavirus numbers would be implemented fully, which would mean different enforcement measure based on each community's designation.

Under that framework, most schools would open as scheduled on Sept. 1, based on the arrangements made thus far, which entail capsules and distance learning for older students. The main goal of this approach is to get the economy back on its feet. However, schools in cities, towns, and locales designated "red" would not open.

As far as the High Holidays, which begin at the end of September, Gamzu and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed that decisions would be made by Sept. 10. Decisions will be based on public health considerations and the capacity of the country's hospitals to treat the number of coronavirus cases that arrive.

The second possible framework Gamzu presented would be relevant if the virus continues to spread and the health care system is unable to handle the number of cases. That framework would be much more severe and would include a shutdown in "red" cities. Under the terms of those shutdowns, residents would be forbidden to be more than 500 meters [1,600 feet] from their homes; and businesses, restaurants, shopping malls, and other leisure venues would close. Public services would be open on an emergency basis, and private businesses would operate with 30% of employees on the premises.

Some ministers voiced criticism of Gamzu's proposals. Housing and Construction Minister Yakov Litzman demanded fewer restrictions on synagogue activity.

"Why can 500 people attend cultural events, but only 20 can be in a synagogue?" Litzman asked Gamzu.

Testing in the 24-hour period from midnight Wednesday to midnight Thursday resulted in 1,479 new confirmed cases, the National Coronavirus Knowledge and Information Center reported Friday.

As of Friday morning, there were 396 coronavirus patients listed in serious condition, up from 374 a week ago. The number of active or symptomatic carriers stood at 22,442, compared to 21,840 a week ago.

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The death toll stood at 795 on Friday, after an additional 11 patients succumbed to the virus in the same 24-hour period.

The cities and towns listed "red" in which the number of coronavirus cases among their residents is 50 or more include Jerusalem, Bnei Brak, and Modi'in Illit, as well as Kafr Bara, Ilut, Jedeidi-Makr, Beit Jann, Kafr Qasim, Harish, Rahat, and Tira.

"Red" cities, towns, and communities with fewer than 50 cases include Tifrach, Uzeir, Givat Brenner, Kfar Tavor, Daliyat al-Carmel, Ussifiya, Lapid, Emmanuel, Rababa, Yanuh-Jat, and Kfar Chabad.

This weekend, the number of confirmed cases in Israel since the beginning of the epidemic here some six months ago is expected to top 100,000.

However, Professor Hagai Levin – an epidemiologist at the Braun School of Public Health at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem – said the true number of cases in Israel was already over 100,000 and "could exceed half a million."

Levin based his assessment on a serological study conducted in Israel, which detected the presence of antibodies, meaning that a person had been exposed to coronavirus and his or her body had produced a reaction.

"It's time to expose the results [of the study]," Levin said.

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Since the start of the pandemic, 80,054 people in Israel have contracted the virus, and the death toll has remained at 576 since Thursday.

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There were 778 COVID patients hospitalized at Israel's various medical centers, including 358 in serious condition, of whom 102 were on ventilators. Another 143 of the hospitalized patients were listed in moderate condition.

In total, there were 24,220 active or symptomatic patients nationwide.

There has also been a rise in the number of cities and towns coded "red" due to high numbers of new confirmed cases among their residents. As of Friday, the list included Bnei Brak, Modi'in Illit, Ein Naqquba, Kfar HaOranim, Elkana, and Ilut. Cities coded "orange" included Jerusalem, Ashdod, Beit Shemesh, Elad, Betar Illit, and Qalansawe.

Meanwhile, a survey of hospital directors conducted by Assuta Medical Center in Ashdod in May found that most hospital heads in Israel are dissatisfied with the government's handling of the coronavirus crisis, and feel that the health care system is unprepared to handle the situation if it worsens.

The main challenge the hospital directors cited was a shortage of protective equipment for hospital staff, followed by frequent changes in government policy.

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As of Wednesday morning, eight additional Israelis had succumbed to the virus, bringing the country's death toll from COVID to 561 since the start of the epidemic.

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The number of patients hospitalized in serious condition rose by 11 and stood at 344 on Wednesday, compared to 326 a week ago.

There were 24,635 confirmed active or symptomatic cases in Israel as of Wednesday morning.

On Wednesday afternoon, the government's corona cabinet was scheduled to meet to discuss a new plan from national coronavirus coordinator Professor Ronni Gamzu to reduce the spread of the virus.

The ministers in the cabinet were slated to decide whether or not to reinstate business activity on weekends. Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said Tuesday morning during a visit to Wolfson Medical Center in Holon that it was urgent to stop the spread of the virus, but there was no public health justification for keeping businesses that normally operate on weekends closed.

"We can't live with these numbers for long," Edelstein said.

"Even if there is no additional rise, we have to flatten the curve. We will try to institute unified criteria for restrictions. One thing is clear: If we don't maintain a full closure on weekends, there is no point to partial limitations on activity," the minister added.

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Essentially, the Health Ministry sought to initiate such a move as early as Saturday, but was blocked by the ministries of finance and economy due to the immense economical ramifications. The decision was not to restrict businesses (including places of leisure), but companies were asked to keep as many employees home as possible.

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Behind the scenes, preparations are being expedited, as the decision to impose a complete shutdown is ultimately forthcoming. The decision will depend on the number of infections and the contraction rate on the ground, which could indicate that the pandemic has spiraled out of control.

In this scenario Israel will transition to a state of national emergency: In accordance with a government decision, management of the economy will be transferred to the Defense Ministry, which will apply special authorities given to it under law. These will include – if and when the time comes – shutting down all places of work in the country, excluding several thousand factories designated as "essential." Only people who work in these places will be permitted to leave their homes. Citizens will be allowed to go only short distances from their homes – mostly to buy food or medicine – and restrictions on the number of people allowed to gather in a specific space and the personal distances between them will be stringently enforced, as is the case in Italy at the moment.

The Israel Police is tasked with enforcing these restrictions on the public. But on Saturday a senior official confessed that the organization lacks the manpower for the mission, and will require the help of the IDF. The IDF would rather not be assigned such a mission, in order to avoid the precedent of soldiers policing cities across the country.

We can assume that if the situation becomes extreme, the mission will indeed fall on the IDF because no other state body can carry out a mission of this scope, and the police will have plenty of other jobs to perform. Preparations for this scenario are already underway, including broad recruitment of reserves or reassigning non-combat troops to policing missions.

In the meantime, the IDF is tightening its protocols in order to prevent widespread infection within its ranks. As reported by Israel Hayom on Friday, tens of thousands of soldiers who were ordered to report to their units on Sunday morning were told to prepare to remain on base for one month. These units include all combat outfits, the air force, navy and intelligence branches, where the majority of soldiers will enter "reverse isolation" – they will stay on their bases, which will be closed off to prevent infection from the outside. Non-essential support troops will be ordered to stay at home.

The army is also preparing to build temporary hospitals in the north, center, and south of the country. These will be activated only if the infection rate spikes and will only be used to treat mild cases to ensure patients remain completely quarantined from the community. Also behind the scenes, the Defense Ministry is preparing to appropriate hotels and hostels across the country and use them to quarantine the infected.

The defense establishment has also bolstered cooperation with the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria and Gaza, with the understanding that this is one geographical unit and that upholding rigorous restrictions in all areas is critical for preventing the virus from spreading. Senior officials lauded the cooperation with the relevant bodies in Judea and Samaria and Gaza, even saying the coronavirus has "calmed the Middle East down" because all countries (including the various terrorist organizations) are now solely focused on stopping the virus.

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Democrats had blocked the package in the Senate during the 35-day partial government shutdown, saying the chamber should first consider legislation to reopen the government.

But after Friday's agreement to end the shutdown at least until Feb. 15, most of the Senate's Democrats joined Republicans in favor of taking up the bill.

The measure is still several steps from becoming law, and may never get there. Even if passed by the Senate, it must also be approved by the House of Representatives, where Democrats hold a majority of seats.

The legislation includes provisions to impose new sanctions on Syria and guarantee security assistance to Israel and Jordan. Those are seen as efforts to reassure U.S. allies worried about shifts in U.S. policy since President Donald Trump abruptly announced plans last month for a quick withdrawal of U.S. troops in Syria.

However, the act also includes the BDS provision, aimed at protecting state governments that refuse to do business with supporters of a boycott.  Opponents claim the provision is an impingement of free speech.

"While I do not support the BDS movement, we must defend every American's constitutional right to engage in political activity. It is clear to me that this bill would violate Americans' First Amendment rights," said Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats and was a "no" vote on Monday.

Some Republicans accused Democrats of supporting the BDS movement, which they say is anti-Semitic. Democrats, in turn, accused Republicans of trying to use the BDS measure to divide moderate and liberal Democrats.

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