The United States on Monday voiced concerns about the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Israel, raising its travel health notice after the country reported over 1,500 new coronavirus cases since midnight.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also raised travel notice to "Level 3: High" for the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
In June, the CDC had lowered its travel advisory rating for Israel to "Level 1: Low." The "Level 3" rating says unvaccinated travelers should avoid nonessential travel to Israel and is one level below the CDC's most severe travel rating.
The announcement came shortly after the Health Ministry reported that 1,538 people tested positive for coronavirus since midnight, the highest daily tally since March 16.
The ministry said over 73,000 tests have been conducted since midnight Monday, putting the infection rate at 2.1%.
The number of severe patients has also increased and now stands at 121, the highest the figure has been since April. At least 25 patients are connected to ventilators.
At least one patient passed away on Monday, placing the official death toll from coronavirus to 6,461.
In the meantime, the ministry also reported an increase in the number of people who've received their first vaccine shot. After two weeks in which the number of newly vaccinated averaged 4,000 a day, on Sunday the tally jumped to 4,347.