POPULISM KILLS:

"We could have [had] a smaller second wave if we would have treated the situation better," Gabi Barbash, a former director-general of the Health Ministry, told The Times of Israel.

And he cautioned against pointing fingers at citizens for their conduct, suggesting that the buck should stop with leaders. "The public is not clear of responsibility, but I was raised in the army, with the saying 'there are no bad soldiers, there are bad commanders,'" said Barbash.

His comments come as the number of new daily virus cases, which had dropped to low double digits through most of May, is soaring to some 1,000 per day, and the number of active cases is at an all-time high of more than 11,600. New restrictions reducing gathering sizes at synagogues and event halls to 50 went into effect Monday morning, and the cabinet is to consider further restrictions on Monday evening.

But Barbash, professor of epidemiology and preventative medicine at Tel Aviv University and former CEO of the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, says the government could have prevented things getting this bad. He said that while the current government brought together Likud and its former foe Blue and White ostensibly so they could deal with the emergency, "it didn't help in any way, it didn't do anything good."

Barbash added: "It's a corona government that is really not about the corona."

In his view, the government both failed to take preventative measures and went too far in easing restrictions in late April and early May, because it didn't stand firm in the face of pressure from the public. "As a result they have taken steps they shouldn't have taken," he said.

The intensity of the second wave has largely been caused by "management issues," according to Barbash, who added that Israel "should have responded more and earlier."

Tweet   @brothersjudd