Citizens don masks
Photo: AFP
'Mexico City's streets deserted'
Photo:AP
Israeli Memorial Day events in Mexico canceled
Consul tells Ynet cancelation due to warning against mass gatherings in wake of swine flu pandemic
The Israeli Embassy in Mexico City has decided to cancel events scheduled for Memorial Day due to the threat posed by the swine flu, which has already taken the lives of at least 83 people in Mexico.
Pandemic Threat
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"We are not planning on taking any unnecessary risks so apparently we will not be holding Memorial Day events this year," Consul Itzik Erez told Ynet on Sunday.
"We will act according to orders from the Mexican Health Ministry and avoid any mass gathering."
The consul said the Jewish community in Mexico was fearful of the flu's spread. "There is anxiety," he said.
"People understand that the situation is grave and are beginning to show signs of concern regarding how long it will last and for how long people will have to stay indoors."
Erez added that the streets of Mexico City had been deserted, which could harm Jewish businesses.
But the consul said the community would not relinquish Independence Day events easily. "As of now we are not planning on canceling but rather postponing it to a later date," he said.
Preparations in case of an outbreak in Israel continue, and the Defense Ministry said Sunday that at this stage the Health Ministry was responsible for the crisis.
However, the ministry stated, if the World Health Organization begins to issue stronger warnings about the pandemic it will become the Defense Ministry's responsibility and a national crisis team will be established by the government.
