So why has Israel lost control of Covid-19? The simple reasons are it emerged too hastily from lockdown, without a clear exit strategy and without a contact-tracing system. But why was that allowed to happen? I tried to answer in @haaretzcom THREAD haaretz.com/israel-news/.p…
The most simple thing whenever anything goes wrong in Israel is to blame Netanyahu. But in this case, it does start and end with him. He made 2 good decisions at the beginning of the pandemic, to close borders and shut down the country. But he dropped the ball from then on. Why?
Netanyahu has many political and leadership qualities, but he’s no manager. And he’s bored by social issues he doesn’t see as part of his duties as leader. Netanyahu has literally been astonished by what he’s discovered in the health and social benefits systems in this crisis.
Every Israeli PM is naturally preoccupied with security and diplomacy and little time for social matters. It’s the usual priorities. But there hasn’t been a PM like Netanyahu with so little interest in any of these issues that bore him and as a result so little experience/knowhow
Other Israeli PMs have at least had some capable and experienced ministers who were taking care of social issues when he’s busy with security. Netanyahu’s cabinet, especially since 2015 had very few of those and was in fact dysfunctional by design. This wasn’t a pandemic cabinet.
Netanyahu didn’t appoint talented ministers to offices where they would excel. He gave main portfolios to coalition partners, to keep government stable and the minor ministries were awarded to Likudniks according to loyalty. He expected to run the country from his office anyway.
To make things worse, when pandemic hit, cabinet had already been of an interim government for 15 months, due to the 3 elections. Most ministers expected to move jobs anyway. MoF Kahlon had already announced he was resigning and suddenly had to plan a covid financial relief plan.
Health Minister Litzman, had actually been in charge of his ministry for most of the decade and expected to stay on but was the worst of the Netanyahu-type ministers, a coalition crony using his power for narrow interests of his rabbis. Not someone to deal with a national crisis.
The 2 key ministers were MIA. Kahlon had already mentally retired and Litzman was focused on exempting Haredi institutions from lockdown, until he got Covid himself and faded away. Cabinet was absent and irrelevant. Which left Netanyahu and the civil service running the show.
The Israeli civil service is not cut of one cloth. There are 3 power-bases - Defence, Finance, Justice. The civil servants in other ministries are traditionally weak and have become more weakened under Netanyahu as ministries were sliced and diced to create more political titles.
The Health Ministry has relatively little power over the public health sector. Most of the power is with the health insurance funds, the main hospitals and the Israel Medical Association. The ministry was usually run by a small clique of doctors who tried to enforce regulations.
Litzman further weakened the Health Ministry by appointing for the first time as DG in 2015 a non-medical boss. A young economist from the Finance Ministry. When the pandemic came, he became the most powerful civil servant in Israeli history who wasn’t a general or a spy chief.
Without capable ministers, Netanyahu was running the country during a pandemic advised by two economists (DGs of health and finance ministries) and his own national security advisor (formerly mid-level Shin Bet officer). That was the team and dissenting voices were filtered out.
One minister was brimming with ideas (some good) and with the resources to implement them. But Netanyahu didn’t want Defence Minister Bennett getting any of the credit for handling the crisis. So Israel’s largest organization, the IDF, was used only for relatively minor tasks.
So Israel by May seemed to be doing well because closing the borders and lockdown had reduced infections and the high-quality (if understaffed and overcrowded) hospitals dealt with the relatively few serious cases. But there was no coordinated planning for the next wave of Covid.
In mid-May, Netanyahu had two reasons to celebrate. He’d used the pandemic to force Gantz in to joining his government and the daily rate of infections was way down. He told Israelis to go out, drink coffee and bear and have fun. But there was no plans in place for what came next
And the new Netanyahu-Gantz cabinet suffered from the same problems. Gantz wants to use the MOD’s resources but Netanyahu won’t let him get involved. MoH Edelstein didn’t want the job and has no policies or authority. MoF Katz wanted his job but is being undermined by Netanyahu.
Bottom line. Six months into the pandemic Israel still hasn’t got a comprehensive financial relief plan or a contact tracing system. The ministers and key civil servants have all been replaced and are still fighting each other over who gets to do what. Infections are skyrocketing
Anyway, read it all here @haaretzcom how Israel won the 1st round against Covid, but is losing the 2nd round and has no plans for winning or for economic recovery, because of a prime minister who defenestrated his cabinet and hollowed out the civil service
haaretz.com/israel-news/.p…
haaretz.com/israel-news/.p…
