Israel began a national drill on Thursday to test the country’s preparedness for the outbreak of a new, more lethal variant of the COVID-19 virus.
The exercise, which is being conducted from a situation room in Jerusalem in the format of a war game, is designed to test national management of a new “Omega” strain, according to an official statement.
“The State of Israel is in an excellent situation. We beat the fourth wave and we are on our way to exiting the Delta variant,” said Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, according to the statement.
With the situation in much of the rest of the world worsening with respect to the pandemic, said Bennett, “Israel is safe and protected.” But, he added, “to maintain this and safeguard the continuity of normal life, we must continue to closely monitor the situation and prepare for any scenario.”