Israeli PM urges youth get vaccine amid spike in cases

Newly-installed Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is urging young people to get vaccinated, after the country reimposed some COVID-19 restrictions last week amid a spike in cases.

Bennett, during a government meeting on Sunday, pleaded with Israel’s youth to “talk to your parents and get vaccinated.”

“We don’t want to impose any restrictions: not on parties, on trips or anything like that. But specifically because of this, if you don’t want restrictions, go get vaccinated today,” Bennett added, according to The Associated Press.

Israel on Thursday announced that it was reinstating its indoor mask mandates following the rise in coronavirus infections, particularly from the Delta variant.

The country recorded 113 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, according to the AP, which followed a four-day trend of more than 100 new cases per day earlier in the week.

Israel tracked 169 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, which was the highest number of new daily cases the country had seen in months, according to The Times of Israel.

The number of daily deaths reported, however, still remains close to zero.

Bennett also announced that the government tapped a special director to oversee the country’s border crossings in an effort to tame the spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses, according to the AP. The official will focus on Israel’s main international airport, among other avenues.

He said Roni Numa, a former army general, will work to ramp up the country’s efforts “to prevent the entry of this virus and variants and other future viruses from around the world into Israel,” according to Reuters.

The reinstatement of Israel’s mask mandate comes despite the country being a leader in the world vaccination effort.

The country has administered more than 10.6 million COVID-19 vaccines, according to The New York Times. At least 57 percent of the country is fully vaccinated.

The spikes in cases will also be one of the first challenges Bennett faces as prime minister after his government was approved earlier this month, ending long-time Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-years of leadership.