All the major ultra-Orthodox population centers in the country are now considered to be red cities in terms of COVID-19 infections, after initially preserving a relatively low-rate of infection during the latest Delta wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
The haredi cities of Bnei Brak, Modiin Ilit, Beitar Ilit, and Elad are now red cities because of high rates of infection, along with the smaller towns of Rechasim and Kiryat Yearim - Telzstone.
Severe cases of COVID-19 infection are still relatively low for the haredi community, however, with only 7% of severe cases coming from the sector although it comprises some 12% of the population.
Mani Hadad, a spokesman in the Health Ministry for the haredi sector, said that since infection rates in the community have lagged behind the general population by about two months, this figure might be expected to rise in the coming weeks.
Testing in the sector is currently lower than the ultra-Orthodox share of the population, standing at 9% compared to approximately 12% of the population.
Hadad said that the testing rate in the sector varies from week to week, standing at 12% last week.
The infection spike in the sector has generally been attributed to the early return to studies in the ultra-Orthodox community which starts at the beginning of the Jewish month of Elul, which fell this year on August 8.
Since then, the infection rate has steadily increased, with several outbreaks in yeshivas, Hadad said, especially among school-aged children, with infection rates for those 24 and over much lower than those for 10-16-year-olds.
Hadad also noted that there had been less inclination in both the hassidic and Sephardic sub-sectors of the ultra-Orthodox community to get the third vaccination shot, saying specifically that there is greater concern in the Sephardic community regarding rumors and false news about the vaccines which has caused a lower rate of vaccination.
The ministry has embarked on a strong campaign to boost vaccination numbers, both for those who have not been vaccinated at all and those who have not gotten the booster shot.
All three grand rabbis of the Gerrer, Viznitz and Belz hassidic communities, the biggest hassidic groups in the country, have called on their followers to get the third shot, with the Gerrer rebbe himself recently receiving the booster.
Rabbi Shimon Baadani, a member of the Shas Council of Torah Sages, and Rabbi Meir Mazuz, a prominent yeshiva dean in Bnei Brak and the Tunisian Sephardi community, have both recently called on their followers to get the third shot, while Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem Rabbi Shlomo Amar made a general call for vaccinations on Sunday.
The daughter of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, the leading rabbi in the Ashkenazi, non-hassidic ultra-Orthodox community, said on Friday that her father had also called for all those eligible to get the third shot to do so, as well as repeating his call for all those over the age of 12 to get vaccinated.