COVID-19: Palestinian tested positive 1 day after freed from Israel

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH (AA) - Only one day after his release from an Israeli jail, a Palestinian man tested positive for coronavirus, said an official source on Wednesday.

The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees said the results of the medical test on Noureddine Sarsour, from the city of Betonia, west of Ramallah, showed he was suffering from the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19.

The commission, run by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), held the Israeli side responsible for what it described as a "crime".

Sarsour was arrested on March 18 and released on Tuesday evening after spending his detention period in Ofer Prison (west of Ramallah) and the Benjamin Investigation Center.

On Monday, the commission said: "The [Israeli] occupation announced three Israeli jailers were infected of coronavirus, two policemen in Ofer Prison, and another in Ramla Prison."

On the same day, Palestinian factions called on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to intervene and protect detainees in Israeli prisons, in light of the outbreak.

Coronavirus cases in Israel reached 5,591 on Wednesday while 21 deaths were reported so far. Palestinian Authority said the number of confirmed cases stands at 134.

Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh called earlier for the release of all detainees in Israeli prisons, for fear of contracting the virus.

Israel holds 5,000 Palestinians, including 43 women, 180 children, and 700 patients in its prisons.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China, in December, the virus, which causes COVID-19, has spread to at least 180 countries and regions, indicates the Johns Hopkins University database.

The data shows the confirmed number of cases worldwide has surpassed 874,000, with the death toll over 43,200, and more than 185,100 recoveries.

* Writing by Ali Abo Rezeg in Ankara.