Miki Zohar
Miki ZoharOlivier Fitoussi/Flash90

Coalition Chairman and Likud MK Miki Zohar slammed Israel’s coronavirus czar over his efforts to block the annual pilgrimage to Uman, while refusing to crackdown on mass demonstrations inside of Israel.

Speaking with Reshet Bet Wednesday morning, Zohar accused Prof. Ronni Gamzu, the director of Israel’s efforts to curb the coronavirus pandemic, of turning a blind eye to the mass gatherings of demonstrators, even as most mass gatherings have been strictly prohibited.

“Gamzu didn’t deal with the protests at Balfour Street [in Jerusalem] because he’s afraid of the media,” said Zohar.

“We have 2,000 new patients a day even without flights to Uman.”

Zohar called on Gamzu to work to create a compromise arrangement to enable Breslov Hasidim to visit Uman in Ukraine.

“Now he needs to understand that the flights to Uman are going to happen, and he should start preparing for it rather than sending letters to Ukraine opposing the Prime Minister’s position.”

“As of right now, there are 85 flights [planned] to Ukraine ahead of Rosh Hashannah. That’s about 25,000 seats on flights. I’m working to get an agreement between all those involved to get that number reduced to 6,000, with close monitoring by the authorities in the Ukraine. In addition, we need to work to ensure there are coronavirus checks for those boarding the planes and getting off once they return to Israel.”

On Tuesday, Gamzu doubled down on his opposition to holding the annual pilgrimage to Uman this year, calling the mass gathering in the Ukrainian town a major health hazard.