Two more people have tested positive for coronavirus, rising the number of cases in Israel to at least 12, the Health Ministry confirmed on Monday.
One of the patients is a resident of Ramat Gan in central Israel, while the other is from the city of Ashdod in the south. The two returned from Italy on February 25 and 26 respectively. The two were set to be taken to the dedicated quarantine area at Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv, where the other 10 coronavirus patients currently reside.
Italy is now among the countries severely affected by the health crisis, with 52 confirmed fatalities and over 1,694 confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus. Last week the Health Ministry issued a travel warning to the country, adding that anyone returning from the European state must immediately self-quarantine for 14 days.
On Sunday, three more people were confirmed to have tested positive for the new virus, with two of them also recently returning from Italy.
The third patient is a female IDF soldier who worked at a toy shop in the city of Or Yehuda near Tel Aviv.
She contracted the virus from the store’s manager who was diagnosed with the illness last Thursday, four days after returning from a trip to Italy. The man's wife has since also contracted the virus. The couple lives in the community of Irus, located south of Rishon LeZion in central Israel, but are currently in quarantine at Sheba Medical Center.
A man from Migdal HaEmek in northern Israel also contracted the disease while on a trip to the European country and tested positive upon his arrival to Israel last week.
The other four coronavirus patients returned from Japan after being quarantined for two weeks on the virus-hit cruise liner, the Diamond Princess. One of the patients has since recovered and was released from hospital.