Israel's cases looks worrying

[StrangeAddiction]

I've just screenshot this graph from an article on the Sky news app (I'll try and link to it if anyone wants to read it)

Should we be worried for the same happening here?

news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-britain-beware-israel-living-the-consequences-of-trying-to-return-to-normal-12020444

I was looking at this last night. I wonder why they’ve had such a big resurgence of cases whereas places in Europe haven’t.

I noticed in the article he mentioned people becoming lax so it could be that that is the case and at the moment other countries are still being a bit stricter with mask wearing/social distancing etc for now at least...

It's quite scary.

The article says that they lapsed on social distancing when lockdown eased. They thought that the hot summer weather would provide some defence against the virus. Clearly it doesn't 😥.

It is worrying because there are clearly plenty of idiots here who don't seem to think social distancing matters.

I believe there is a lot inter-generational living there too which I cannot imagine helps the situation.

I've only just started venturing out and the amount of people not wearing masks in the shops was quite worrying, basically one or two were wearing masks, me being one of them and once inside the shop there was no social distancing going on.

No i'm not scared or worried.

Pride events?

I don't think it's helpful to compare to other countries. Every country is unique with different demographics, different living conditions, different ways of working and socialising.

All we can do is wait and see.

I don't think people not social distancing or wearing masks in the shops is anything to be concerned about because that's been happening since lockdown started really. I've never worn a mask to the shops.

One of my close friends lives in Haifa. She keeps surprising me with her daily update of the incredibly sociable everyday life in Israel. She isn't no exception - constantly hosting guests, visiting friends, schools back to normal, etc.

They thought that the hot summer weather would provide some defence against the virus. Clearly it doesn't.

I don't know whether temperature does affect prevalence, but as in other hot countries, in summer people in Israel are more likely to spend time indoors in air conditioned buildings. In Europe (northern Europe at least) we're more likely to spend time outside on warmer days.

She IS no exception...

Classic second wave there...

Maybe reopening schools played a part. AFAIK one school had 130 confirmed cases. And if they’ve been socialising indoors etc, then that’ll be a main driver too.

It’s why today’s relaxations are the most significant. So many indoor activities including collective worship and being able to stay the night at people’s.

While I agree to a point about not comparing countries with regards to population, housing, working etc surely socialising is similar if people are going to pubs or cafes or restaurants especially in cities where there will be more people enjoying the eased restrictions.

I agree that temperature doesn't seem to make much difference and @psychomath makes a good point about residents of hotter countries spending time indoors with a/c vs residents of cooler countries spending warm days outdoors.

I think as waxonwaxoff0 said, we shouldn’t compare countries as there are so many differences between each country. We just have to wait and see. The uk have been very slak though compared to Spain and Italy.

www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/06/03/868507524/israel-orders-schools-to-close-when-covid-19-cases-are-discovered?t=1593857762948

Two weeks after Israel fully reopened schools, a COVID-19 outbreak sweeping through classrooms — including at least 130 cases at a single school — has led officials to close dozens of schools where students and staff were infected. A new policy orders any school where a virus case emerges to close.

The government decision, announced Wednesday evening, comes after more than 200 cases have been confirmed among students and staff at various schools. At least 244 students and school employees have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to the Ministry of Education. At least 42 kindergartens and schools have been shuttered indefinitely. More than 6,800 students and teachers are in home quarantine by government order.

——-

Isn’t the policy in UK to only take action if there’s 2+ cases in a school?

@psychomath

They thought that the hot summer weather would provide some defence against the virus. Clearly it doesn't.

I don't know whether temperature does affect prevalence, but as in other hot countries, in summer people in Israel are more likely to spend time indoors in air conditioned buildings. In Europe (northern Europe at least) we're more likely to spend time outside on warmer days.

I wonder if vitamin D might be contributing to this too if they spend a lot of time indoors

I think they went from a very very strict lockdown (only allowed 200m from your home except for food or medicine) to more or less fully opened, restaurants, bars etc. I was speaking to a friend in Israel yesterday and he said the major issues seem to be amongst the young people, school children mainly. But of course they may well spread it to older folks.

Intergenerational living and extended family networks appear to be a big factor in the transmission of the virus

Israel appears to be an exception. The majority of countries who have opened have not seen a resurgence of cases. See graphs for Germany, Italy and France. All the European countries I have looked st, have a similar pattern.
From reading around it appears that Israel did not have a track and trace system in place when they reopened? This may explain it.

This seems to say they technically have lots of rules about mask-wearing but actual practice is all over the place, patchy enforcement, not in schools either.

You don't actually need to spend that long in full sunlight to produce enough vitamin D, so I don't think this would be a major factor. Plus there's a much stronger culture of physical fitness there than here, at least among non-Orthodox communities, because of their mandatory military service, so I would expect that fewer people spend all their time indoors. But hot summer weather is more likely to drive people to do their socialising in houses and bars rather than outdoor venues, which is the opposite effect to here.

And a city in Catalonia, Spain locked down too. Wonder if that will affect 'travel corridor' between her an Spain.

It's also a small country and many people live in very densely populated cities - Jerusalem and Tel Aviv both have over 7000 residents per km² (for comparison, central London has about 5700) and account for about one sixth of the population between them. As a generalisation I'd also say there's a lot less regard for health and safety and more of a "life is short, let's make the most of it" attitude, probably because there's a lot more conflict in the region than we're used to in Europe, and of course a majority of people are living with generational trauma from the Holocaust. I agree with the article that we should learn from other countries' experiences, but also agree with Waxon that we should be wary of drawing direct conclusions from what happens in other places, especially ones that are geographically and culturally very different from our own.