Teams at the White House are concluding the last preparations for the signing of the Abraham Accords between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain, the first such agreement signed between the Jewish state and an Arab country in 25 years.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday released a clip from Washington in which he is seen holding the “historic draft peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and the historic declaration of peace between Israel and Bahrain.”

“We have worked on this for very many years. This moment arrives tomorrow,” he declared.

“This is a great turning point in the history of Israel and in the history of the Middle East. It will have a great and positive effect on every citizen of Israel. I also promise you, according to what I see here, that additional countries are on the way,” he added.

Announced on August 13, the Abraham Accords is the first between a Gulf state and Israel and is expected to lead to similar agreements with other Arab countries, possibly Oman, Morocco or Saudi Arabia.

Israel and the two Gulf Arab states have committed to begin the exchange of embassies and ambassadors, start direct flights between their countries, and launch cooperation initiatives across a broad range of sectors.

US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani will address the event at the White House, which will include representatives of several Arab countries.

Jared Kushner, Senior Advisor to Trump, told the press in Washington that the ceremony “is a culmination of President Trump’s strong leadership and the vision of the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Bahrain, and the State of Israel.”

“These agreements are a huge accomplishment for the countries involved and have led to a tremendous sense of hope and optimism in the region. Instead of focusing on past conflicts, people are now focused on creating a vibrant future filled with endless possibilities,” he said.

In the meantime, officials on both sides did not wait for the signing and have already contacted their counterparts.

Most recently, Israeli Diaspora Minister Omer Yankelevich spoke on Monday evening with Bahraini Jewish Member of Parliament Nancy Khedouri.

“One of the goals I set for myself when I took over as Diaspora Minister was to reach Jewish communities that no one has been in contact with to this day. I did not imagine that I would have the merit to do so with countries that had no ties to the State of Israel,” she said on Facebook.

Israel’s Science and Technology Minister Izhar Shai will host on Tuesday an online international conference of 18 science ministers from European and Latin American countries who will discuss the international cooperation on the fight against Coronavirus (COVID-19).

The science ministers will share knowledge about their countries’ efforts against the Coronavirus, including pioneering research and innovative medical technological developments.

The participating countries will sign a joint declaration on international scientific cooperation regarding the coronavirus and creating channels for joint research between the countries.

The participating countries are Argentina, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Peru, Poland, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Saturday with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and thanked her for her “steadfast position in defense of the Jewish community and the ancient tradition of circumcision.”

Several Danish political parties have launched another campaign to ban male circumcision in the country.

Frederiksen told the Danish TV2 News that “many Jews do not find it compatible to live in a country where circumcision is banned, and I simply do not think we can make a decision with which we do not live up to our promise – that the Jews will remain part of Denmark.”

In the conversation with Frederiksen, Netanyahu noted that “this was a matter of maintaining Jewish identity through the generations” and that he “appreciates how the Danish people protected the Jewish community during and after the Holocaust.”

He added that he hopes that this commitment will also continue in the future. The leaders also discussed dealing with the challenges of the coronavirus.

Female circumcision has been banned in Denmark since the early 2000s. It is also illegal for Danes to travel abroad to have their girls circumcised.

It is estimated that about 1,000-2,000 boys are circumcised in Denmark annually, mostly from the Muslim and Jewish communities.

Israel registered another dubious record on Wednesday when the number of daily Coronavirus (COVID-19) new cases in 24 hours reached 3,904, three times the rate in May.

Since the beginning of the week, 13,428 new patients have been diagnosed in Israel. In comparison, in the entire month of April, 10,182 Israelis were diagnosed, and in May only 1,183.

The number of patients in serious condition climbed to 477, of whom 133 are on life support.

Results of about 43,500 tests were received on Wednesday, 9% of which returned positive, meaning that one in 11 tested subjects returned positive for the virus.

The number of COVID-19 death climbed to 1,054.

Israel has the highest morbidity rate per million citizens in the world.

The government on Tuesday night imposed a nighttime closure on some 40 “red” locations with a high infection rate.

Experts warn that the current restrictions are not sufficient and that a full closure will be required to stem the spread of the virus, especially ahead of the Jewish High Holidays that will commence in two weeks.

Ultimately, the government has yet to decide on how to address the pandemic in a comprehensive and successful manner, and the various ministries are offering and promoting different, and at times, contradicting moves.

The government is expected to discuss its moves on Thursday, with the prospects of a total closure throughout the country looming large.

A nighttime curfew was imposed on Tuesday evening on 40 “red” cities, towns and neighborhoods across Israel in an attempt to stem the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and possibly as a prelude to a full lockdown on the country.

The ministerial committee on declaring restricted zones on Tuesday approved the recommendation of the Health Ministry and Corona project director Prof. Ronni Gamzu to impose night curfews on areas with high morbidity from 19:00 until 5:00, for the coming week.

The education institutions in these areas were likewise closed, except for special education.

“The decision was made upon the conclusion of an orderly consultative process will all of the local authorities in which there is high morbidity, by senior Health Ministry officials and Gamzu,” the Prime Minister’s Office stated.

The majority of sites under curfew are either Arab or Ultra-Orthodox towns.

The measures were introduced after several postponements, and the initial restrictions introduced were scaled back significantly due to political pressure.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday visited the Municipality of Beit Shemesh, one of the cities placed under nighttime curfew.

“I am certain that we will successfully overcome the coronavirus. Together we will win. There are many problems and there are many more questions. There will be many more challenges. I ask that our directives be followed because that is the only way we will win the war. There is no other way,” he stated.

Experts warn that the current restrictions are not sufficient and that a full closure will be required to stem the spread of the virus, especially ahead of the Jewish High Holidays that will commence in two weeks.

Ultimately, the government has yet to decide on how to address the pandemic in a comprehensive and successful manner, and the various ministries are offering and promoting different, and at times, contradicting moves.

The latest idea on the table is to shut down the school system completely for the duration of the High Holidays for a period of about four weeks. The concept behind this proposal is that the school system serves as a hotbed for infections, and therefore should be closed so that students don’t bring the virus home and infect their extended families during the holiday celebrations.

The government is expected to discuss its moves on Thursday.

In the meantime, the Ministry of Health updated Tuesday evening that it documented 3,496 cases in the past 24 hours, one of the highest numbers of daily infections since the outbreak began.

According to the data, 458 patients are hospitalized in serious condition, of whom 138are on life support.

Of a total of 138,739 cases since the outbreak began, 107,003 have recovered and 1,040 Corona patients have died from the virus.

Israel has the highest morbidity rate per million citizens in the world.