There are battles being waged between Israeli officials tasked with managing the coronavirus crisis in Israel.
The Health Ministry is in a battle against the Defense Ministry over who should take the lead and against the Finance Ministry that opposes drastic steps. Doctors are fighting Health Ministry Director General Moshe Bar-Siman-Tov, deeming him unqualified to manage the crisis. Bar-Siman-Tov is fighting with Health Ministry's no. 2 Professor Itamar Grotto. Defense Minister Naftali Bennet is fighting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and vis-a versa.
And while all of this is happening, no one is there to fight the virus.
While leaders are motivated by their own interests and egos, COVID-19 continues to cause havoc and we are catching up with the numbers reported out of Italy, Spain and the rest of Europe.
The number of confirmed cases, seriously ill and patients needing ventilators is rising dramatically. Coronavirus wards in our hospitals are quickly filling up and the death toll is also increasing.
Now that the immediate future is becoming clear, there is no time to waste on nonsense.
The new measures, with only minor alterations to those already in place, do not change the prognosis one bit. The bickering, over whether to restrict people to venture from home 50 or 100 meters, doesn't change much in the grand scheme of things.
All health experts agree and have been demanding a complete lockdown to be imposed on everyone. No exceptions.
Only a full lockdown that will keep all of us indoors for a limited period of time, will stop the exposure of more people to the virus.
Although the steps taken by the government has slowed the rate of infection a bit, it is not enough. The new numbers of confirmed cases are proof that too many people are still moving around, and the spread continues.
A lockdown would mean no walks in the park or strolls on the beach, no sports, no playgrounds and even no supermarkets.
If enforced effectively, such a drastic measure will shorten the time needed to fight the epidemic and the Health Ministry might ease the restriction after the Passover holiday, at the end of next month.
Alternatively, all Israelis should be given surgical masks to ensure those who are carriers of the virus do not infect others. This seems to have been effective in Japan and South Korea, where confirmed cases remained low. Unfortunately, Israel doesn't have a stock big enough to share with every resident.
During the discussions held at the Prime Minister's Office, a slue of excuses as to why the lockdown should not be imposed, were presented.
Participants expressed concern for the effect the lack of exercise might have on the population, clearly not comprehending the danger we are all facing.
The number of coronavirus patients will grow 32-fold by the end of the holiday. This must stop.
Stop the nonsensical bickering over details or we will all become sick.