The early response of the Israeli government to the coronavirus epidemic was spectacular. Because of the rapid and decisive reaction of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, the epidemic was shut down in the nation rather quickly. Israel was lauded as a model of how it should be done, and other countries were following their model.

Unfortunately, the prime minister and his team then let themselves get distracted. They began to focus most of their attention on trying to annex or legally incorporate large swaths of the biblical lands of Judea and Samaria—what the world calls the West Bank of the Jordan River—into the modern, sovereign state of Israel.

The talk became “to annex or not to annex”—every day, all the time. Members of the Knesset debated; newspapers and television reporters postulated; the Palestinian leadership threatened; Arab nations strongly warned against; U.S. officials engaged in high-level discussions with Israel and the Arab states but kept their cards very tight against their chest.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus saw an opening. Sneaky and stealthy by nature, it slid back into the country while everyone’s attention was turned the other way. Currently there are between 1,500 and 2,000 new cases being reported every day. Israeli journalist Amy Spiro reported that 36,893 new cases were confirmed in just the past month—12,013 of them just last week.[1] That means that 63 percent of all of Israel’s cases from the time the pandemic began have occurred in the last thirty days.[2]

While there is certainly plenty of blame to go around, many are happy to drop it right at Netanyahu’s feet. Thousands have taken to the streets to protest his recent mishandling of COVID-19. In one gathering, thirty-four protesters were arrested right outside the prime minister’s house.[3] As the economy has shuttered, and tourism is nonexistent, and no foreigners can enter the country, and most Israelis can’t leave, and unemployment has risen to 21 percent, Netanyahu’s approval rating has plunged below 30 percent.[4]

That said, despite how grim it’s looking for him, the prime minister still has time to turn it around—and must.

Defeating COVID-19 has to become the Israeli government’s absolute top priority. Annexation must be taken off the board completely for now. The public health and economic situation in Israel is too volatile and unpredictable to let anything be a distraction. If Prime Minister Netanyahu can regain the same sort of control on the pandemic that he had during his early successes, it is yet possible for him to be seen as the man who led the nation to health and prosperity rather than the one who took his eyes off of what was important and let the nation be taken down by the enemy sneaking up from behind.

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[1] Amy Spiro (@AmySpiro), “13 people have died of coronavirus in Israel over the past 24 hours. 302 people are hospitalized in serious condition. 12,013 new cases have been confirmed in the past week,” Twitter, July 24, 2020, 3:42 a.m., https://twitter.com/AmySpiro/status/1286582424772784128

[2] Amy Spiro (@AmySpiro), “36,893 new cases were confirmed in the past month. That’s 63% of all COVID-19 cases in Israel since the beginning of the outbreak,” Twitter, July 24, 2020, 6:37 a.m., https://twitter.com/AmySpiro/status/1286626678698057728

[3] i24NEWS, “Israel: 34 Arrested as Thousands Protest in Jerusalem against Gov’t,” i24NEWS, July 22, 2020, 3:30 a.m., https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/1595379681-34-arrested-in-protest-outside-of-pm-netanyahu-s-residence

[4] Eli Berlzon and Maayon Lubell, “Israelis Urge Netanyahu to Quit over Coronavirus, Corruption Charges,” Thomson Reuters, July 21, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-israel-protests/israelis-urge-netanyahu-to-quit-over-coronavirus-corruption-charges-idUSKCN24M2NF