An Israeli ambulance worker was fired after he was caught on camera spitting on portraits of Jesus while visiting a Christian home in Tel Aviv to carry out a coronavirus test.
Security camera footage showed the medic removing his mask and spitting on three pictures in a hallway in the house.
As he was leaving the block of flats, he was stopped by a tenant who asked why he spat on the portraits. The medic replied that those images were a form of idolatry that is forbidden by the Hebrew Bible.
Israel's ambulance service has "strongly condemned" the medic's behaviour. Magen David Adom (MDA) took to Twitter to comment on the incident and inform the public about the disciplinary measures applied to their employee.
This is a severe incident for which the employee was called to a disciplinary hearing by MDA's management. The employee was informed that he is unworthy of representing the organization and wearing the uniform, and that he is being dismissed immediately.
— Magen David Adom (@Mdais) November 16, 2020
MDA Senior Management contacted the community leaders and strongly condemned the incident. Magen David Adom works with, and has members of all sectors of society including Christians, Druze, Jews, religious and secular sectors of all religions who professionally...
— Magen David Adom (@Mdais) November 16, 2020
This comes as Israel has been experiencing a surge in the number of COVID-19 infections. According to the World Health Organisation, Israel has so far confirmed 322,371 cases, with 2,716 deaths.
