A child reacts as an Israeli medical worker wearing a protective outfit takes a swab test for covid-19, at an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish school in the central Israeli city of Rechovot, on June 25, 2020. (Photo by Gil Cohen-Magen via Getty Images)

This article originally appeared on Haaretz, and was reprinted here with permission.

Israel’s coronavirus infection rate and new daily cases have surged, according to Health Ministry data, sparking fears of a new pandemic wave.

The omicron wave in Israel has been receding since February, though there has been an uptick in the infection rate and daily infections over the last week. Since March, the infectious BA.2 variant has replaced omicron as the dominant strain in the country.

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According to new Health Ministry data, Israel recorded 12,869 new cases on Monday, an increase of 5,070 from the previous day. This brings the number of active cases in Israel to 49,349. Also, the R number – the average number of people each coronavirus carrier infects – has climbed in recent days and now stands at 1.23.

The number is calculated using data from the last 10 days. The pandemic is contracting as long as the infection rate is less than 1.

Serious cases, however remain stable and currently stand at 328, an increase of six from Sunday.

So far, 6,701,291 people in Israel have received one dose of the COVID vaccine, 6,125,757 have received two doses, 4,470,873 have been inoculated three times and 739,833 have received a fourth vaccine.

Since the pandemic erupted in Israel, 10,431 people have died from the virus.

This article originally appeared on Haaretz, and was reprinted here with permission.

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