With an increasing number of people being diagnosed with the coronavirus in Israel, fears of a second wave are beginning to rise around the country, according to a recent Israel Democratic Institute survey.With regard to the increase in diagnoses, 57% of Jewish citizens are beginning to return to fears of contracting the virus once again, up from 49%, and 72% of Israeli-Arab citizens fear this, up from 55%.When it comes to their current financial situation, nearly half of the Jewish sample and three-fourths of the Arab sample expressed concern about their economic future in a post-coronavirus world. The results, however, are skewed by household income, where less than a third of those whose income is categorized as "above average" actually expressed concerns.When asked about the Israeli government's handling of the coronavirus, 44% (down from 57.5%) are satisfied with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's response to the pandemic in Israel.However, there is a "slow persistent erosion" in public confidence regarding the work of professional bodies with regard to combating the coronavirus spread. Some 59% of Jewish citizens are still confident in the Health Ministry (down from 65%), and 39.5% still have confidence in the Finance Ministry (down from 50%).Regarding fears of a second wave, 45% of Israelis believe that we are already currently in the second wave, while 44% don't agree, and 11% are undecided. In contrast, the majority of the Arab sample (56%) believe that Israel is in the beginning of a second wave. Only a third of adults over 65 believe this to be the second wave.With the recent discovery of multiple coronavirus outbreaks within Israeli schools over the past two weeks, the IDI asked their respondents if they believe schools should be closed. Some 42% support the government's policy of closing only schools where cases were found, while about a third (31%) believe that all schools should be closed, and 19% believe that all schools should stay open.Half of the Arab sample supported the closure of schools (48%), compared to one-fourth of the Jewish sample (27%). Attitudes toward school closures are related to how fearful one is of contracting the virus during the presumed second wave.
Israelis are fearful of catching coronavirus during second wave - survey
When asked about the Israeli government's handling of the coronavirus, 44% (down from 57.5%) are satisfied with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's response to the pandemic in Israel.
