89-year-old Israeli woman in critical condition; over 700 confirmed cases

Netanyahu has ordered a police-enforced lockdown to prevent further spreading of COV-19, which is especially threatening to the elderly.

By Aaron Sull, World Israel News

On Thursday, an 89-year-old woman coronavirus patient was listed in critical condition after being rushed to Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital.

The elderly woman had suffered “rapid respiratory deterioration” from the deadly disease, a spokeswoman for the hospital said in a statement.

The Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, south of Tel Aviv, said Friday morning that the condition of a 91-year-old woman hospitalized there had deteriorated and that she was in very serious condition, Times of Israel reported.

Over 40,000 suspected carriers are quarantined at home.

A police-enforced lockdown was ordered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday night, mandating everyone to stay at home for seven days.

“The government will approve tonight emergency regulations to limit movement. You are ordered to stay at home… This isn’t a request, this isn’t a recommendation, but a binding requirement that will be enforced.” Netanyahu said in a statement.

‘The purpose of these instructions is to ensure as few people will be infected and will infect [others].

“We have closed the borders of the state, introduced a broad isolation requirement, imposed a congregation restriction, diluted the workplaces and implemented digital means to locate and isolate corona patients. The measures have slowed the rate of the epidemic in Israel compared to many countries in the world – but it continues to spread,” he said.

The latest figures by Israel’s Health Ministry confirms that 705 Israelis have been diagnosed with the coronavirus.

According to the Health Ministry, at least 266 patients are hospitalized, 86 are at home, 47 are staying at hotels that were converted into coronavirus hotels, and the rest are still being evaluated as to where they should be treated.