Israeli health minister tests positive for Coronavirus, will continue to work from hospital

Israeli Health Minister Yaakov Litzman went into isolation on Thursday after testing positive for novel Coronavirus, according to his office.

Litzman, leader of the Jewish ultra-Orthodox party of United Torah Judaism, is in isolation with his wife who has been infected, reports Xinhua news agency.

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“The Minister and his wife feel well and are being treated,” the Health Ministry said in an official statement.

He will continue to work and coordinate the efforts from a designated facility in the Sheba Hospital outside Tel Aviv, the Ministry said.

On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was self-isolating after a parliamentary aide tested positive for coronavirus, though an initial investigation determined the 70-year-old was unlikely to have been infected.

Israeli media said the infected aide had been present at a parliament session last week attended by Benjamin Netanyahu as well as opposition lawmakers with whom he is trying to build an emergency coalition government to help address the coronavirus crisis.

As per the latest updates, 6,211 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in Israel and 31 have died so far.

A total of 932,605 Covid-19 cases have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories with 16,809 deaths reported so far, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

Israel is currently facing a parliamentary crisis as the elections on March 2, the third within a year, once again failed to produce a clear majority by either Netanyahu or Gantz.