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Israel has quickly shuttered a number of diplomatic missions all over the world due to COVID-19 infections, International Ministry Director-Common Alon Ushpiz mentioned.
As of Monday, Israel’s consulate in San Francisco and its embassies in Angola and the Philippines have been closed due to infections and quarantines amongst International Ministry employees, Ushpiz mentioned in a Zoom briefing with Israeli journalists.
Two extra missions, together with one in South America, have lately skilled transient closures, in response to International Ministry sources.
International Ministry employees each in Israel and overseas work in pods to restrict the unfold of the virus.
In whole, 13 folks on the International Ministry headquarters in Jerusalem have been sick with COVID-19 on Monday morning, with six extra in quarantine. Overseas the problem was better, with 142 contaminated staffers – together with diplomats, their households, and native hires – and one other 89 in quarantine.
“Finally, it’s the duty of the heads of missions, and in addition the private duty of the folks working there,” mentioned Ushpiz. “There isn’t any distinction in that respect between this subject and the safety challenges we take care of.”
Some Israeli diplomatic missions are staffed by only a few folks — generally solely a chief of mission and head of safety — so infections and quarantines can simply trigger closures.
The International Ministry has invested vital effort and sources into vaccinating its diplomats and staffers. In February, it started flying them into Israel to obtain their vaccinations.
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