As of staturday, April 11, some 312 Palestinians living in territories occupied by Israel since 1948 (present-day Israel) have tested positive for the novel coronavirus COVID-19, with an increase of 34 cases from Friday.

The number of coronavirus infections among the Palestinian residents of Israel has, thus, seen a 12.2% leap. 15,305 tests have been carried out so far, an increase of 6.6%.

The statistics do not include infections among Arabs in Jewish-Arab mixed cities of Israel.

Recently, commentators said the figures do not reflect reality as there are more infections among the Palestinian residents of Israeli-occupied territories than is reported. The gap has been attributed to the relatively small number of tests conducted in Arab communities, as well as a lack of epidemiological investigation to locate those who had been in contact with COVID-19 patients.

There is mounting concern that the COVID-19 outbreak among the Palestinian community in territories occupied since 1948 could gain strength during Ramadan.

On March 22, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel (Adalah) sent an urgent letter to Israeli authorities demanding access to essential medical services for more than 70,000 Bedouin Palestinian citizens of Israel residing in unrecognized villages in the Naqab (Negev) region in southern Israel.

Residents of unrecognized Bedouin villages in the Naqab lack access to urgent healthcare services and at-home examinations, said Adalah.

Adalah demanded the Israeli Health Ministry immediately address this urgent public health issue stemming from deficiencies in providing equitable health services to the residents of unrecognized villages in the Naqab desert region.

"Israel has for years maintained a policy of neglect and discrimination when it came to providing routine health services – as well as emergency medical services – to Bedouin citizens of Israel in the unrecognized villages. In light of the coronavirus crisis, this state policy has now resulted in an immediate danger to local residents and the general public alike,” added Adalah Attorney Sari Arraf in his urgent letter to Israeli Health Ministry Director General Moshe Bar Siman-Tov.