JERUSALEM (JTA) — Two cities in central Israel are spraying pesticides against mosquitoes after one case of the Zika virus was diagnosed in each city.
Rishon LeZion and Holon are spraying in the vicinities of the patients’ homes in an effort to prevent the spread of the virus. Both were infected outside of Israel, according to reports.
At least 17 people carrying the virus have entered Israel in recent months, Haaretz reported.
The Aedes aegypti mosquito is the prime carrier of Zika, but other mosquitoes capable of carrying the disease exist in Israel. The disease can also be transmitted sexually.
The virus produces flu-like symptoms, but in pregnant women it can cause microcephaly, in which babies are born with abnormally small brains and heads, and experience developmental delays.
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