Israeli PM leads first coronavirus cabinet

Israel's newly re-established coronavirus cabinet met in Jerusalem on Sunday evening, chaired for the first time by newly elected Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.

Earlier on the day, Bennett urged the country's youth to get vaccinated as case numbers have crept up in recent days due to a localized outbreak of the delta variant.

Israel reinstated a mask mandate indoors amid a rise in new infections in the past week.

Israel's Health Ministry recorded 113 new coronavirus cases on Saturday.

Bennett also said the government had appointed a special director in charge of managing the country's border crossings, with particular emphasis on Israel's main international airport, and preventing the spread of the coronavirus and other diseases.

Many of the new cases reported in the past week were traced to individuals who had arrived from abroad.

IMAGE: AP