“The Palestinian Authority is asking Israel to test Palestinian workers for the coronavirus before tens of thousands of them return to the West Bank ahead of Passover next week, fearing they could spark a massive surge in infections in the territory, officials said Wednesday.  Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh spoke by phone with Gerald Rockenschaub, the head of the World Health Organization’s mission to the Palestinians, and asked him to convey the request — on behalf of the Palestinians — to Israel,  Ibrahim Milhem, the premier’s spokesman said at an evening press conference in Ramallah.”

“Both Israel and Hamas have closed the Gaza border to nonessential traffic as a precaution against the spread of the infection. But with Gaza authorities appealing for foreign humanitarian assistance, Israel has been weighing its role. ‘The moment there is talk of the humanitarian world in Gaza – Israel also has humanitarian needs, which are mainly the recovery of the fallen,’ Defense Minister Naftali Bennett told reporters, referring to an infantry officer Oron Shaul and conscript Hadar Goldin who were killed in the 2014 war and their remains kept by Hamas. ‘And I think that we need to enter a broad dialogue about Gaza’s and our humanitarian needs. It would not be right to disconnect these things … and certainly, our hearts would be open to many things.'”

“Protests broke out on the streets of Jaffa late on Wednesday after police attacked five young men and arrested four, leading to an even more aggressive response from Israeli officers in the predominantly Palestinian community.  Videos circulating on social media showed police using rubber-coated steel bullets and stun grenades on Jaffa’s main street as protesters burned tyres and dumpsters. The incident is one of a long line of police brutality cases against Palestinians in Jaffa, and one that occurred during increased tensions amid a nationwide lockdown to slow the spread of coronavirus.” See Also: “Dozens of people protest in Jaffa after quarantine violator arrested” (Jerusalem Post)

“Both Husseini and Budeiri said Israel is shirking its responsibilities. ‘They [Israelis] contacted local East Jerusalem hospitals and told them you are on your own to deal with patients from East Jerusalem,’ Budeiri said. ‘They threw at them 2 million shekels [$500,000] and said, ‘You manage with that money.’ This is peanuts compared to what is needed.’”

“For these reasons, the discovery of two infected persons on 21 March, and an additional eight cases by 30 March, inaugurated what many deem a nightmare scenario. Everyone knows that the authorities are ill-equipped to contain the spread of the virus or to care for those afflicted. Some estimates suggest that as much as a quarter or half of any population is vulnerable to contracting the disease, and that 20 per cent of these people will require hospitalisation.  If correct, these estimates would translate into a need for at least 100,000 beds over the length of the outbreak in Gaza. Yet the territory has only 2,500 beds, give or take a few. Alongside the shortage of beds and basic protective gear and hygiene supplies for medical staff is a stark shortfall of ICU equipment and ventilators.  Gaza’s health ministry notes that Gaza has 65 ventilators in use or in poor condition, stressing that the strip urgently needs at least 150 more.  UNRWA has no hospitals and offers only outpatient care.”

“Health Minister Yaakov Litzman and his wife were diagnosed with the coronavirus, according to an announcement made by the Health Ministry…In recent weeks, Litzman has held meetings and discussions with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, along with many in the government and the health care system, meaning that some senior figures in the government and health care sector may need to enter isolation. “

“The team work has only just begun and those recruited to help have encountered obstacles that are by no means simple, stemming from the special aspects of Haredi society and the need to face an unfamiliar crisis. One of the greatest challenges is accessibility to information. Many residents don’t follow non-ultra-Orthodox media and do not have smart phones or internet. There is also a problem of under-reporting. Not everyone with symptoms is in a hurry to report them, either out of shame or the desire to maintain privacy. It is very difficult to assemble a clear picture due to lack of data. So far more than 750 cases have been reported in the city. Most of them are relatively mild and the people are remaining at home. Over the past two days the Home Front Command has been able to persuade only about 60 people with the virus to leave their homes and go to a hotel designated to receive them. But due to the overcrowding in Bnei Brak apartments, isolation is impossible at home and other members of the family are almost certain to contract the disease.”

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday evening said all Israelis should wear masks when out in public, and promised stipends for Passover for Israeli children and pensioners. He also introduced strict limitations to travel in and out of Bnei Brak, the ultra-Orthodox city with one of the highest coronavirus infection rates in the country, as part of new directives to stop the spread of the pandemic. Health Ministry Director-General Moshe Bar Siman-Tov reiterated that Israelis should not rush out to buy masks as they should be left for medical professionals, but can improvise with material and rubber bands. The most important thing, Bar Siman-Tov said, was that the nose and mouth were covered.” See Also: “Treasury officials said blindsided by Netanyahu promise of emergency stipends” (The Times of Israel)

“Until the recent coronavirus outbreak, it was one of the most secretive. As it turns out, the Shin Bet has what it calls “The Tool,” essentially a secret intelligence database where information about every citizen is constantly collected. The new emergency regulations granted the Shin Bet permission to use it to track coronavirus patients. According to an investigative report by journalists Ronen Bergman and Ido Shvartztuch published March 27 by Yedioth Ahronoth, while the database was originally intended to be used in the war against terrorism, the possibility of it being used for other purposes poses a real threat to civil liberties. One unnamed former top Shin Bet officer was quoted in the piece as saying, ”The Tool’ has saved countless of Israeli lives. It is hard to imagine us waging the war against terrorism or our efforts to expose espionage without it.’”

“Defense Minister Naftali Bennett has no intention of backing off of his plan to partner with controversial Israeli spyware firm NSO in creating a system grading citizens on their likelihood of spreading the coronavirus, despite the Justice Ministry’s reservations. Earlier on Wednesday, the Justice Ministry said it was an unusual step as it hands private information about citizens to a private company. The problem is even greater given that the Shin Bet was allowed to track citizens only by invoking emergency regulations.”

“On Tuesday, Likud and Blue and White officials believed their unity government deal was all but sealed…On Wednesday, that notion seemed to unravel…Likud began on Wednesday to publicly demand that Gantz agree to annex at least part of the West Bank within the next six months – and to drop Gantz’s vague demand from the campaign that some form of “international agreement” precede such a move. Netanyahu had a powerful argument for his six-month timeline, one calculated to instill a sense of urgency on the right. As he explained to fellow Likud leaders, the next six months “could see the window close” on the possibility of annexation because US President Donald Trump may not be reelected in November. The sudden hardening of positions turned the all-but-certain unity government into a frozen and uncertain stalemate — a stalemate that Gantz’s abandoned center-left allies insisted proved Netanyahu’s intentions had been dishonest from the start.”

“At the crux of the gridlock is a diplomatic disaccord. The Likud insists on implementing Israeli sovereignty over West Bank lands, as a direct continuation of US President Donald Trump’s peace plan and without any complications from Blue and White. Blue and White refuses, having rejected a compromise proposal by which when the time comes and when such an initiative is put before the Knesset, each party will vote independently. Gantz demands veto rights on all diplomatic decisions. Senior Blue and White sources indicated this morning that they will enter a unity government only if the party can preserve its principle stances. Some party members threatened that if negotiations do not advance rapidly, they will once again seek legislation against an indicted Knesset member serving as prime minister.”

“A draft unity government agreement reportedly provides for the establishment of a new, official residence for Israel’s ‘acting prime minister’ — the role Blue and White leader Benny Gantz is set to play for the first 18 months, and Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu for the second 18 months, of their potential unity coalition. A Channel 12 news report Wednesday evening initially said the provision for a state-provided official residence for the acting prime minister was a Likud demand, but later reported that both sides were claiming that the other initiated it…While the Likud party responded to the report by calling it ‘fake news,’ Blue and White said that Gantz planned on remaining in his private Rosh Ha’ayin residence until he takes over as prime minister in a year and a half. The report of a shock demand for a presumably costly new residence — made at the height of an economic crisis that has left more than a million Israelis unemployed amid the battle against the coronavirus — came at the end of another round of talks on the “emergency coalition” that Gantz said last Thursday he would join. “

“We had pinned our hopes on Gantz being the savior of Israeli democracy, which has been so threatened by Netanyahu and his cronies,” says Dr. Ziad Mahameed, a general practitioner from the northern Arab city of Umm al-Fahm. “His surrender is a huge disappointment, and many of us who dared believe change was possible now feel utterly despaired.”