Sunday, March 22, 2020
Elder of Ziyon
Now Ma'an quotes an Israeli broadcast saying that the Israeli Prison Service has a comprehensive plan to address the threat of infection in the prisons and is fully aware of the dangers of having a population in prison.
Strict sterilization and disinfection is being done in all prison cells, prison departments and shared places.
Sterilization, cleaning and disinfection materials are being distributed to prisoners in all departments, and members of the IPS are overseeing sterilization, disinfection and cleaning activities.
A team has also been established in each prison, whose specific mission is to maintain frequent cleansing.
Israel can expect no thanks from the Palestinian Authority or Hamas, who apparently would prefer that an outbreak occur for public relations purposes.
Last week, a rumor was spread by social media, Palestinian NGOs and then Hamas that four prisoners had contracted the virus, and Israel had to announce - together with the Palestinian Authority - that it wasn't true. In fact, four prisoners were suspected of being in contact with someone who became ill so the four, who have no symptoms, have been quarantined.
This doesn't stop haters from spreading ridiculous rumors, like the IPS is telling prisoners to use socks for masks.
The US State Department mentioned in a press briefing that the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem noted that "the Palestinians and the Israelis are having excellent cooperation and exchanges on COVID-19." There was an article about this cooperation in Al Monitor last week as well.
