Mass vaccination program for children will necessary for expanded herd immunity, says Israel’s top coronavirus official.

Tags:CoronavirusLockdown Arutz Sheva Staff , Mar 10 , 2021 8:21 AMShare

Israel will not impose a new lockdown in the next few weeks, Israel’s coronavirus czar said Wednesday morning.

Speaking in an interview with Radio 103FM, Prof. Nachman Ash said that based on the current infection rates and the decline in the number of seriously ill COVID patients, he does not believe a new lockdown will be necessary before this month’s Knesset election or the upcoming Passover holiday, which begins on the night of March 27th.

“With a high degree of certainty I can say that Israel won’t go into a lockdown before the election or Passover.”

Ash expressed ‘satisfaction’ with the declining COVID numbers, saying “I look with satisfaction at the statistics; there is a nice decline in infection rates.”

Despite the fact that election day is a national holiday, with most of the population having a vacation from work, Ash rejected claims that it is a “high risk” day.

The coronavirus czar also discussed the issue of vaccinating children under 16, who are currently not eligible for the vaccination program.

Ash said that expanding the program to include younger children will be necessary, to create a more comprehensive herd immunity in Israel.