Following a spike in Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) cases, Israel now plans to implement COVID-19 genetic scanning for inbound passengers. According to Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, travelers at the Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv will be the first ones to undergo this genetic screening. The move comes as Israel sees more COVID-19 cases among its vaccinated population because of the B16172 delta strain.
Bennett says during a Sept. 12 cabinet meeting: "We are working on a scanning system for everyone who comes into Israel. Israel will thus become the radar for the virus." His remarks follow a warning by Israeli Minister for Social Equality Meirav Cohen: "The next variant will come to Israel through Ben Gurion [airport]." No information about the new genetic scanning system is available as of writing despite Bennett's confirmation.
According to the Times of Israel, Bennett's decision comes after a cabinet review of the Israeli government's COVID-19 response – following a recent wave of infections due to the delta variant. Officials say travelers who fail to quarantine properly after they arrive are responsible for this recent wave.
The Israeli government also centers on vaccination as an important strategy to curb the spread of the B16172 delta variant. It now offers third booster shots for all Israelis 12 years old and above.
Bennett also says during the Sept. 12 meeting: "We have run out of patience for people who are not vaccinated." Israeli Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz agrees, saying that "the coronavirus has become a matter for those who are not vaccinated" and "refraining from vaccination simply causes death."
Current figures by the Israeli Ministry of Health show more than 6 million citizens have had at least one dose of the vaccine and 5.5 million have had two doses. The ministry's figures also indicate that 2.8 million out of Israel's 9.3 million population have availed of a third booster shot.
Despite vaccinating its citizens, Israel still has a lot of COVID-19 cases
The genetic scanning to be implemented at Ben Gurion airport proves to be a huge step in tracking potential COVID-19 variants. However, the concept could possibly attract controversy due to privacy concerns. Aside from the scanning method, the particular genetic material to be scanned and kept by the Israeli government remains unclear. Nevertheless, genetic scanning is among Israel's many steps to combat the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
Back in August 2021, Bennett dismissed the possibility of another lockdown and said vaccination was the best option to address COVID-19 in Israel. "If Israeli citizens continue to be vaccinated on a large scale, we can overcome the delta variant," he said during an Aug. 18 televised press conference.
Bennett continued: "A lockdown is the easiest step for the government. [But in] doing so, we are destroying the future of the country. A lockdown is the last line of defense, only when all other options were exhausted." The Israeli leader argued that lockdowns would leave Israel with huge debts to pay and not enough money for military supplies and advanced medical gear. (Related: PRISON STATE: Israel warns of more lockdowns if vaccination rates don't increase.)
Interestingly, an Infowars report says neighboring Palestine has lower COVID-19 case numbers in spite of its citizens not receiving vaccines. While Israel exclusively vaccinates its population with the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA vaccine, Palestine relies on vaccine donations courtesy of the World Health Organization's COVAX Initiative.
According to naturopathic physician Dr. Suneil Jain, only 8.2 percent of Palestine's population is fully vaccinated. On the other hand, more than half of Israel's population – 62 percent – is fully vaccinated. Despite Palestine's low vaccination rate, figures from OurWorldInData.org show that it has a small number of COVID-19 cases. (Related: Coronavirus cases spike in highly vaccinated Israel but drop in unvaccinated Palestine.)
The same graphs, meanwhile, show Israel injecting more shots into people's arms, alongside skyrocketing COVID-19 case counts. Jain's observation and the accompanying graphs appear to suggest that COVID-19 vaccines themselves may be responsible for the increase in infections among vaccinated people.
MedicalTyranny.com has more articles about Israel's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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