monday, february 24 , 2020. the washington post eZ su A
BY STEVE HENDRIXJERUSALEM — Concerns of a wid-
ening threat from coronavirus a re
growing as millions of Israelis pre-
pare t o gather at p olling places for
national elections next week, after
reports that a group of South Ko-
reans who had visited some of the
country’s most popular religious
and tourist spots tested positive
for the infection.
Dozens of students who might
have been in proximity to the
South Korean tourists were di-
rected to stay i n home-based q uar-
antine for two weeks, as were
hotel housekeepers and employ-
ees of Masada, Te l Beer Sheva and
other national parks. Israeli offi-
cials, who had expressed cautious
optimism that Israel could avoid
significant risk from the global
epidemic, immediately increased
restrictions on those entering the
country.
Non-Israeli travelers from
South Korea and Japan have been
barred from entering, according
to local media reports, and Israelis
arriving from any of several Asian
countries face two weeks of man-
datory quarantine. Officials add-
ed South Korea and Japan to the
list, which had included China,
Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore
and Macao.
Authorities scrambled to ad-
dress the sudden increase in risk.
A Health Ministry official released
the itinerary of the South Korean
group at a hastily called news
conference Saturday night and be-
seeched anyone who might have
been within six feet of the group
for at least 15 minutes to isolate
themselves for two weeks. As
many as 200 people reportedly
entered quarantine based on
those criteria.
Others who might have over-
lapped with the group from a
greater distance were advised to
monitor themselves for fever or
other symptoms of covid-19 infec-
tion.
“We have an opportunity here
to stay on top of the virus,” said
Moshe Bar Siman To v, the minis-
try’s deputy director, according to
the Jerusalem Post. “The p otential
that someone caught the virus
from the tourists is high; whoever
doesn’t e nter quarantine is endan-
gering the public.”
The group of 77 South Koreans
was reportedly on a nine-day pil-
grimage of Christian sites in Israel
and the West Bank, including
more than a dozen churches in
Jerusalem’s Old City, Bethlehem
and Hebron. It was only after the
group flew home in mid-February
that nine tested positive for the
virus. The South Korean govern-
ment a lerted Israel.
The move to bar Korean travel-
ers sparked complaints from
Seoul, where officials reportedly
summoned the Israeli chief of
mission to explain after some 200
South Korean nationals were
turned away at Ben Gurion Air-
port. Cases of coronavirus infec-
tion h ave surged in South Korea i n
recent days. Most o f the infectionscentered on a religious communi-
ty i n the southern city of Daegu.
News of the South Korean trav-
elers’ visits to crowded sites in
Israel came as the country report-
ed its first confirmed case of coro-
navirus infection. One of nine Is-
raeli passengers who was flown
home from a cruise ship stranded
in Japan tested positive for the
virus Friday.
Fear of an outbreak here is
growing as the country prepares
for its third national election in
less than a year, raising concerns
that voters already exhausted
from the country’s prolonged po-
litical stalemate will be scared
away from crowded polling
p laces. Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu’s Likud party a nd Ben-
ny Gantz’s Blue and White coali-
tion f ought to inconclusive r esults
in April and September, with nei-
ther leader able to form a govern-
ment.
Orly Ades, head of Israel’s Cen-
tral Elections Committee, told
Army Radio on Sunday that 20
polling s tations will b e readied for
voters in isolation because of pos-
sible exposure t o the virus.
Public Security Minister Gilad
Erdan said police were preparing
for the possibility o f disruptions t o
voting caused by fear of the virus,
including the spread of r umors or
deliberately false information, ac-
cording to reports. He s aid officers
would enforce the Health Minis-
try’s quarantine o rders if those
implicated refused to comply.
[email protected]V irus fears rise as Israeli vote nears
BY ADAM TAYLOR,
CHICO HARLAN,
MIN JOO KIM
AND KATIE METTLERHONG KONG — Coronavirus out-
breaks in South Korea and Italy
continued to expand rapidly as
both countries reported a slew of
new cases and Italian authorities
raced to seal off hot-spot towns.
South Korea reported a signifi-
cant rise in cases on Monday —
161 — bringing the total to 763,
and one more death, for a total of
seven. Italy said the number of
confirmed cases had reached 152,
up from three in a matter of days.
South Korean President Moon
Jae-in declared a red alert, the
first in the country since t he 2009
H1N1 swine flu epidemic.
The sudden outbreak in Italy
caught authorities off guard. The
new cases reported there and in
countries across the world are
triggering severe interruptions to
air travel, border crossings, festi-
vals and religious celebrations of
the kind that have been upending
life in China since December,
when the epidemic began in Hu-
bei province.
With some new indications
that the coronavirus might have a
longer incubation period than
14 days, the appearance of cases
with no clear link to Hubei and
lingering questions about China’s
counting methods, health offi-
cials remain concerned about the
risk of a global pandemic.
The virus’s worldwide reach be-
came clearer over the weekend.
Government officials in Arme-
nia and Afghanistan closed their
borders to neighboring Iran on
Sunday after Iran’s Health Minis-
try confirmed 43 cases and eight
deaths in the country. Israeli offi-
cials closed an upcoming mara-
thon in Te l Aviv to thousands of
registered foreigners, according
to local media, as concerns
mounted over reports that a
group of South Koreans who test-
ed positive for the virus had visit-
ed some of the country’s most
popular religious and tourist
spots.
South Korea ordered the tem-
porary shutdown of 1,
c hurches and annex buildings be-
longing to the secretive Shin-
cheonji Church of Jesus, from
which more than half of that na-
tion’s cases stem.
The fanning out of passengers
from two infected cruise ships,
the Diamond Princess a nd the MS
Westerdam, continued to chal-
lenge governments around the
world.
Universities a cross northern It-
aly were shuttered. Major soccer
matches were canceled. Venice’s
famed Carnival, which can draw
more than 100,000 people daily,
was suspended two days before it
was scheduled to end Tuesday.
Checkpoints were set up in the
mostly smaller Italian towns
where the virus has been detected
to prevent most people from en-
tering or leaving. Video from the
towns showed abandoned piaz-
zas, boarded-up mini-markets
and “Closed” signs even on
churches. Many residents who
went outside wore masks. The
line at one of the few supermar-
kets in the area that remained
open stretched out the door.
“Since we’re dealing with the
risk of an epidemic, w e cannot say
we’re certain that we can contain
it,” Prime Minister Giuseppe Con-
te told the news channel Sky
TG24. “But these are absolutely
measures we deem effective —
very rigorous — to contain the
spread of the coronavirus, t o limit
the risk of contagion.”
Authorities said they were see-
ing cases, including two in Venice,
that had no apparent connection
to Chinese travelers or the closed-
off hot spots.
Italy’s experience shows the
difficulty countries might con-
front in trying to c ontain the
virus, which can be carried by
people who do not immediately
show symptoms.
“What is worrying about the
Italian situation is that not all
recorded cases seem to have a
clear epidemiological history —
that is, a connection with travels
to China or contacts with already
confirmed cases,” Hans Kluge, the
Europe director of the World
Health Organization, told the Ital-
ian newspaper La Repubblica.
At the start of the weekend,
Italy reported cases in two of its
largest northern provinces, Lom-
bardy and Veneto, mostly spread
around smaller towns.
Authorities said Sunday that
there were also cases in the Pie-
monte and Emilia-Romagna re-
gions, also in the north.
The president of the Veneto
region, Luca Zaia, said schools
would be shut down until March.
“The moment isn’t easy, but
based on today’s figures, we can
still hope we can actually circum-
scribe the contagion,” Zaia said.
The governor of the Lombardy
region, Attilio Fontana, said it was
not yet time for drastic measures
in the country’s economic hub,
the city of Milan. “If things shall
get worse,” he said, “we’re ready t o
take further measures.”
A broader outbreak would be
particularly complicated in Eu-
rope, where borders are open.
Conte said closing borders would
be “draconian” and could devas-
tate the Italian economy, among
the weakest on the continent.
The Chinese government on
Monday announced 4 09 more
confirmed cases of the novel coro-
navirus, bringing total cases in
mainland China to 77,150, with
150 more deaths from the out-
break bringing the total up to
2,592 deaths across the nation.
Within China, the outbreak re-
mains worst in Hubei and its
capital, Wuhan, where the out-
break first emerged in December.The updated official figures
showed that the vast majority of
new cases confirmed across China
— 398 — were in the province, as
were all but one of the new deaths.
Hubei has been under lock-
down since Jan. 23. As of Sunday,
three river cruise ships had ar-
rived in Wuhan to house medical
workers for the city’s strained
health-care system. The first, Blue
Whale, arrived Friday evening,
followed by Changjiang Fu Tai
and Changjiang Fu Tai No. 2 on
Saturday.
The ships will provide
1,267 beds for health workers,
according to local media reports.
Authorities have taken extensive
efforts to provide a safe environ-
ment, including a ship dedicated
to disposing of waste. On social
media, opinions on the ships were
split, with some comparing them
to the Diamond Princess, a cruise
ship that was quarantined in Ja-
pan for weeks.
The majority of the 800 corona-
virus cases in Japan have been
linked to the ship. As of Sunday,
the total number of passengers
and crew infected was 691, up by- The Japanese Health Ministry
reported 147 m ore cases that were
not tied to the ship. Most of the
new Diamond Princess c ases were
among crew members still aboard
the ship, officials said.
The Diamond Princess out-
break has had a global impact. At
least 18 Americans, seven Austra-
lians and two Israelis have tested
positive for the virus after return-
ing to their home countries. Medi-
cal authorities in the United
States and Australia say they ex-
pect to find more cases as more
tests are conducted.
Twelve Indian crew members
have also tested positive, India’s
NDTV reported on Sunday.
The United States and other
countries have imposed a 14-day
quarantine on passengers return-
ing from the Diamond Princess
out of concern the virus spread
aboard the ship.
Japan has insisted its arrange-
ments to isolate passengers and
prevent the virus from spreading
were sound.
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Kim reported from seoul. stefano
Pitrelli in rome, simon Denyer in
tokyo, steve Hendrix in Jerusalem
and liu Yang in Beijing contributed to
this report.Coronavirus spikes in Italy, S. Korea
Manuel silvestri/reuters
Revelers wear protective face masks Sunday at Venice’s Carnival,
which was suspended two days before it was scheduled to end,
amid a sudden spike in cases of the novel coronavirus in Italy.