In the decades since the founding of Israel, Arab citizens never really felt that they were part of the country or its struggles (civil or non-civil). Obviously, there are many reasons for this. Yet even when talking about the 2006 Second Lebanon War, in which 19 Arab civilians were killed (out of a total 44 civilians killed in the war), there is an overwhelming feeling that Arab casualties don’t count. Indeed, none of that changed over the last few weeks, with the spread of the coronavirus in Israel. Ever since the early days of this crisis, many officials, from the prime minister himself to the mostly lowly bureaucrat, have avoided addressing the Arab community in Israel directly.

Even with Arab doctors, nurses and hospital staff serving at the front lines in the battle against COVID-19, the overall feeling is that the Arab community is left out of the game, or rather, the struggle. The most flagrant example of this is the way that up until just a few weeks ago, the Information Center at the Ministry of Health barely communicated with the Arab population. Little was published in Arabic. At the same time, the majority of coronavirus tests were given to the Jewish public. This led to some very vocal complaints, verging on an uproar, among the Arab population. After all, most Arab citizens wanted to follow the instructions in order to protect themselves from the virus. The problem was that they were never told how. It was as if they simply didn’t count.

“We investigated the situation and came to the conclusion that there wasn’t enough information, nor were there enough tests for the Arab population. For example, we discovered that there was no Arabic-language option at the Magen David Adom call center [for health emergencies], and that the waiting time was longer than usual. That is why we launched an intense information campaign in traditional and social media, and we added Arabic-speaking staff to the Magen David Adom call center,” Dr. Zahi Said, a Health Ministry spokesman to the Arab population, told Al-Monitor. “The biggest change, however, came from the health insurance providers. This was the result of a decision to provide family physicians with the option of deciding on their own whether a coronavirus test was necessary and to provide these tests at their clinics, instead of referring patients to Magen David Adom. That helped a lot, because in the Arab society people tend to prefer the intimate relationship they have with their family physicians."

The doctor also said, ''It is important to note that the level of compliance in Arab society with Health Ministry instructions is encouraging. Evidence of this can be seen in the current numbers. As of April 8, there were about 250 cases of coronavirus among the Arab population, after some 10,000 tests were given [about 2.5%]. Furthermore, there are no cases in living facilities for the elderly in the Arab public. This contrasts sharply with the situation in the Jewish public.”