Some 20,251 active cases of the coronavirus were reported in Israel as of Monday afternoon, the highest such tally since the onset of the epidemic in the country, bringing the total number of cases since the beginning of the outbreak to 39,871.
Out of the active cases, 160 are in serious condition and 51 people are on ventilators.
No new deaths were reported and the country's virus-related fatalities remain at 364.
Health authorities reported 1,221 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the last 24 hours, 611 of them since midnight.
In addition, 3.9% of test results returned positive - the lowest such figure since last Wednesday.
Among the Israeli communities with the highest number of infections in the past week are Jerusalem with 1,224 cases, Tel Aviv with 584, Bnei Brak with 553, Beitar-Illit with 336, Ashdod with 296, Petah Tikva with 239, Lod with 207, Rishon Lezion with 2012, and Beit Shemesh with 200 new confirmed cases.
Earlier on Monday, Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz called on the government to impose a 10-day nationwide lockdown to stop the rapid spread of coronavirus.
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Partial lockdown on several Jerusalem neighborhoods during coronavirus outbreak
(Photo: AFP)
In an interview with Ynet, the energy minister said that he recommends "breathable” closure when it would still be possible for people to go to work.
He added that being connected to the rest of the world is “essential to the economy," referring to Israel's omission from the list of countries with a low COVID-19 infection rate. The omission means Israeli visitors are banned from entering Europe.