In the coronavirus pandemic, Israel is a model – opinion

Will Israelis be able to conduct semi-normal activities while maintaining safe distances? If Israelis can do it, the world is thinking, we can do it, too.

By MICAH D. HALPERN
Israelis stranded in Argentina amid coronavirus outbreak return to Israel (photo credit: AMSALEM TOURS)
Israelis stranded in Argentina amid coronavirus outbreak return to Israel
(photo credit: AMSALEM TOURS)
Every Jew in the United States who loves Israel is watching as the country slowly reopens, slowly, baby step after baby step, returns to itself after the near total corona-induced shutdown. 
American Jews who love Israel are acutely aware of just how aggressive Israel was in efforts to stave off the advance of this deadly plague. The cities that were closed and the communities that were quarantined, the borders that were shut and the flights that were turned away, the social distancing and the 14-day seclusions: the entire country in serious no-nonsense lockdown.  
It is nothing short of a modern-day miracle that in a country with a population of nine million, approximately two hundred people died while in New York, a city just about the same size, nearly 28,000 people have already died. 
It is not just Jews who are closely watching the slow reopening of the Jewish state. Health professionals and political leadership around the world are monitoring what happens in Israel. Everyone is hoping that Israel has taken the lead, paving the way towards normalcy – but that hope is tinged with fear. A palpable fear that Israel is moving too quickly too early, that there will be a rebound and a spike in what has, until now, been a relatively well-controlled handling of toxic COVID-19.       
Will Israelis be able to conduct semi-normal activities while maintaining safe distances?  Will they be able to do it garbed in gloves and masks?  If Israelis can do it, the world is thinking, we can do it, too. 
There is a built-in safety net in Israel’s re-opening specifically this week. The Jewish calendar works well with Israel’s decision. Because stores and venues are traditionally closed on Israel Remembrance Day and Independence Day and because the government has already declared that traditional gatherings in commemoration and celebration of those days are only to be permitted through virtual means, an easy-to-handle semi-lockdown is automatically put into the return-to-normalcy equation.
The few days open followed by a two-day lockdown will help slow the spread of coronavirus. It will also prove or disprove if, after tasting freedom for the first time in so many weeks, Israelis can maintain their disciple and adhere to the rules of social distancing.
What the rest of the world has forgotten, but Israelis and lovers of Israel are keenly aware of, is that this is not Israel’s first national crisis. And because of that, the citizenry has become accustomed to following national safety procedures. Wearing gas masks and preparing sealed rooms during the Gulf War served, in a certain way, to pave the way for actions and behaviors necessary for survival during this pandemic. Running to bomb shelters when rockets are launched from Gaza has become ingrained, second-nature behavior, much like behaviors that we – the world, are all now learning. Israelis take security seriously. 
Israelis get it.
When an Israeli spots an unattended package, they report it. And now, during coronavirus, Israelis report people who are not following procedures. This is not tattling or a violation of social norm. The opposite. Those who transgress the rules of social distancing are violating the norms by endangering others. Israelis understand the reasons for the rules. They understand that rules can save lives.
Israel, on the cutting edge in so many ways, is once again showing the world how to handle a crisis and how to care for its nation during a crisis. Israelis have long been trailblazers in bio tech and hi-tech. People around the world watch what Israelis are doing, learn from Israel, and benefit from what Israelis accomplish. And now – right now, pushing hard to find a vaccine to combat coronavirus, millions of dollars in venture capital money has been invested in Israeli labs and pharmaceutical companies. Israel is marching toward a solution that will benefit not just Israelis, but the world.
Hopefully, the results will be positive. Hopefully, the results will come soon.  Hopefully, Israel’s experiment will be successful.
The United States is a country of 330 million people. An educated estimate is that about one million Americans have already been infected by Covid-19. Of the over 50,000 people who have died, most are from New York.
There is much pressure by Americans to reopen the United States. The business community is pushing hard.  Some states have already succumbed to the pressure. Many states are vacillating.  Even President Donald Trump, who wants to reopen as soon as possible, is on the record saying it is still too early to do so.
Much is on the line. People’s lives are on the line. Israel’s leadership has taken the first steps. We will soon know if it was the right decision. The world is waiting.  And this time, friends and foes alike, are holding their collective breath and hoping that Israel succeeds.
The writer is a political commentator.  He hosts the TV show Thinking Out Loud on JBS TV. Follow him on Twitter @MicahHalpern.