"Following the instructions of the Israeli Ministry of Health and the situation assessment regarding the coronavirus, and in the coordination of the IDF Chief of the General Staff and the commander of US European Command, it has been decided to cancel the exercise", the statement said on Wednesday.
Biannual drills codenamed Juniper Cobra started on Tuesday in Israel and were expected to last till 13 March with the participation of over 600 US troops who arrived from Germany and the United States.
Israel is introducing special restrictions for people arriving from Australia and Italy, to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. All Israelis arriving from the two countries will be subject to a 14-day quarantine.
The same travel restrictions apply to people coming from Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, Macao, and Singapore. Israel has also temporarily banned foreigners from entering the country if they have recently been to China.
Worldwide, over 95,000 cases have been reported, with 51,100 people having recovered and 3,254 having died from the illness since it was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.
