Israel's COVID-19 outbreak prompted emergency lockdowns, a national state of emergency, and a major national response program affecting millions of citizens.
Key Facts
- First confirmed case
- 21 February 2020, Sheba Medical Center
- First death
- 20 March 2020, 88-year-old Holocaust survivor in Jerusalem
- State of emergency declared
- 19 March 2020 by PM Benjamin Netanyahu
- Bnei Brak infections (early April)
- Nearly 1,000 confirmed cases
- National response program
- Israel Shield, established July 2020
- Non-citizen travel restrictions lifted
- January 2022
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The global spread of SARS-CoV-2 reached Israel when a female citizen returning from quarantine aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan tested positive on 21 February 2020. The virus's rapid international transmission prompted immediate travel restrictions targeting arrivals from South Korea and Japan.
Israel implemented escalating public health measures beginning March 2020, including gathering limits, mandatory distancing, a national state of emergency, and localized lockdowns in cities such as Bnei Brak and Haredi neighborhoods in Jerusalem. The national response program Israel Shield was established in July 2020 to coordinate the country's efforts.
All major restrictions were lifted by spring 2021, though face mask requirements were later reintroduced and restrictions on non-citizens entering the country remained in place until January 2022. The pandemic also had significant political ramifications, unfolding during the 2019–2022 Israeli political crisis.