Novel Coronavirus

The Novel Coronavirus is on every major headline around the world as it continues to spread aggressively all across the world. With the epicenter, Wuhan, doing a lot better, Europe and Western Asia seem to be the areas reeling in the aftermath of this global pandemic. As countries rush to put in place reforms, rules and bans in order to protect their people from this deadly disease, almost all spheres of our lives have taken a hit. While most countries are implementing travel bans, closing schools and colleges and administering work from home initiatives to employees, Israel seems to be opting for a stricter course of action. Here’s a look at how recent reports from Israel state that they will be turning to their anti-terrorism technology to counter the Coronavirus, and how this affects people in the country.

Drastic Measures in Tough Times

Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has released a public statement that the country plans to utilize its anti-terrorism tracking technology in its fight against the Coronavirus. Furthermore, the PM has also called for a partial shutdown of the Israeli economy as a means to minimize the spread of the coronavirus. This could mean that the people of Israel will now be under cyber monitoring.

This technology has been previously put to use to locate, identify and punish extremist groups and terrorist cells within the country. Netanyahu in his press conference held in Jerusalem on Saturday mentioned that this tracking and monitoring technology will now be used to identify and track people exposed to the virus. However, this still remains a plan, and to turn it into a viable strategy the PM still required approval from his cabinet. Also, Netanyahu has said that he has asked for clearance from the Justice Ministry approval as these measures could lead to the infringement of privacy of the nation’s people. The PM also drew flak for not mentioning how Israel would help fight the disease in the Palestinian territories under its control.

Further Steps to Prevent Spread

In a bid to escalate precautionary measures, the Israeli government has asked all malls, hotels, theaters, and restaurants to shut down from Sunday. They have also issued orders asking employees not to go to their workplaces unless it is absolutely necessary. However, the government has not placed any such bans on pharmacies, banks, and supermarkets as they provide vital services to its citizens. Health officials from Israel are also requesting people to maintain distance, not to attend social gatherings and to stay at home. Netanyahu mentioned that while using such technology might feel unfair to some, he had to make the hard choice as the invisible enemy was one that needs to be located.

The military had issued a statement on Saturday which said that it was ordering all troops to return by Sunday, with soldiers having to prepare for tough times. The military also specified that the soldiers would have to prepare for long periods of stay, with no leaves in question in the next one month. Furthermore, since last week, anyone entering Israel after a foreign visit will have to quarantine themselves for two weeks. Over ten thousand Israelis have put themselves in self-quarantine and all schools have been shut till the end of March.

Invasive Technology

Israeli domestic security outlet Shin Bet confirmed that they were working on ways to utilize technology to fight the virus, as per the request of the government. However, they did say that the government has not mentioned anything regarding the enforcement of quarantine. A member of the Association for Civil Rights, Avner Pinchuk, says that such technology could help with the real-time tracking of mobile phones to pinpoint the location of infected people.

This could also help them collect the data required to backtrack their steps and gain insight into where all they went and who all they had contact with. However, he feels that while the situation is bad, using such invasive technology might have serious repercussions on privacy and human rights. The government is, in fact, putting into motion the same steps followed in Taiwan. These actions have been made due to the Health Ministry confirming that over 193 people in Israel have tested positive to the coronavirus. As a result, over 40,000 people have been self-quarantined to prevent the further spread of the disease.