The Japanese Ambassador to Israel Mr. Haruhisa Takeuchi chats with then-Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz as Surgeon General Brig. Gen. Dr. Nachman Ash (center) observes in 2011. Photo: IDF/Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Health Minister Yuli Edelstein announced on Tuesday that they had agreed on the appointment of Nachman Ash as the country’s new National Coronavirus Project Coordinator. Ash will be replacing professor Ronni Gamzu, who is leaving the post at the end of the week.

Ash, who is slated to begin the transition with Gamzu on Wednesday, was reported by Channel 12 on Friday night to be on the short list of candidates for the position. He currently serves as director of the health division of Maccabi Healthcare Services and is a professor at Ariel University.

“My first objective is to learn the job and then I’ll be able to formulate a plan and examine how to proceed,” Ash told Channel 12 after the appointment was announced.

Gamzu, director general of Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov hospital), was appointed in July by Netanyahu and Edelstein to lead the country’s response to the pandemic.