Israel's Health Ministry on Thursday morning said that 6,738 new coronavirus cases were diagnosed Wednesday, representing 11.93% of the test results received that day.
Hospitalized around Israel are 332 seriously-ill coronavirus patients, among them 166 whose condition is critical. There are now 149 coronavirus patients who are intubated and 23 who are on ECMO (heart and lung) machines.
One person has been reported so far as having died Wednesday of coronavirus, bringing the total since the start of the pandemic to 10,405 deaths.
Meanwhile, the IDF's Military Intelligence Directorate estimates that by next week, the infection coefficient will rise above one. By Thursday, the infection coefficient for the last day it is available, March 6, had reached 0.92, the highest in the past two months.
In a report, the Directorate said that at this stage, the reason the drop in infections has slowed is not clear, but the rise is likely caused by three main factors: that the BA.2 variant of Omicron is more infectious and is becoming dominant, the reduction in immunity, and the removal of coronavirus restrictions.
The report also noted that while most of the infections are among the older population, it is estimated that there is also widespread infection among children, but it is typically under-reported.