Israel said Sunday it had opened a factory to make millions of high-spec masks as it prepares for a possible "second wave" of coronavirus cases.
"We are preparing for a second wave of the virus," said Defense Minister Benny Gantz, announcing the country's first production line of N95 masks.
Gantz said the local production "removes our dependence on foreign factors and contributes to the Israeli economy during a difficult period."
The new masks are being made in Sderot, a southern town near the Gaza Strip, using machines imported from China by the defense ministry.
Daniel Lev Israeli, owner of the Sion Medical Company which is making the masks, said his firm will be able to produce around two million a month.
"In the coming weeks the masks that will be used by medical teams will be Israeli N95 masks," he said.