A young Israeli boy is hospitalized in serious condition with severe brain inflammation caused by a rare amoeba, the Israeli Health Ministry said on Sunday.
An initial epidemiological investigation found that the boy, around 9 years old, had swum at Kursi Beach on the Sea of Galilee about a week before he was hospitalized, according to the ministry. Laboratory tests confirmed that the infection was caused by Naegleria fowleri.
Fewer than 500 cases have been reported worldwide, the statement said. Two were diagnosed in the United States over the past year, and the Jewish state has recorded three in recent years. The disease has a high mortality rate.
The amoeba thrives in waters ranging from 35 to 42 degrees Celsius (95 to 108 degrees Fahrenheit) and infects humans only in rare cases.
Israel’s two previous cases occurred during a July 2024 health scare at the Gai Beach Water Park in Tiberias. A 26-year-old man died and a 10-year-old boy was left in critical condition from encephalitis caused by Naegleria fowleri.
Both had visited the water park, prompting health authorities to order its immediate closure as a precaution. The closure triggered widespread panic across northern Israel, leading over 70 people—both symptomatic and asymptomatic—to flood emergency rooms to get checked. Ultimately, all evaluated hospital visitors were confirmed healthy and discharged.
