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Israel’s Sephardi Chief Rabbi permits use of phones during Sabbath

March 18, 2020 - from Washington Post and Jerusalem Post:

"The Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel ruled Wednesday that observant Jews can use their cellphones on Sabbath to receive developments and alerts regarding the coronavirus."

"'There is no doubt that everyone who has been tested for coronavirus must leave a cell phone available on Shabbat in order to answer,” Yitzchok Yosef wrote in a letter. “If they see the phone call coming from the health care provider, then they can be updated on their condition and where they should go. And even if there is doubt that the call is from the health care provider, it must be answered.'"

"'Even those who haven’t been tested for coronavirus should leave a cellphone available,' Yosef continued, “so that if it is found that they were near a confirmed sick person and must go into isolation, they can be notified."

"Yosef has decided that, amid the coronavirus outbreak, Pikuach nefesh applies to permit phones as a critical safety measure. Judaism does not have a universal spiritual leader — like Catholicism does with the pope — but a sector of Jews will look to Yosef for guidance."

"In the letter, Yosef also calls for synagogues within hospitals to be closed, since they are often small spaces and people cannot stay two meters apart, as the country’s ministry of health has recommended."