Israeli boy in serious condition after contracting rare brain-eating amoeba

An Israeli boy, approximately nine years old, is in serious condition due to severe brain inflammation caused by the rare amoeba Naegleria fowleri. The Israeli Health Ministry reported on Sunday that an epidemiological investigation linked the infection to Kursi Beach on the Sea of Galilee, where the boy had swum about a week prior to hospitalization. This marks the third diagnosis of this amoeba in Israel in recent years, with fewer than 500 cases reported globally. The amoeba, which thrives in warm waters, has a high mortality rate. Previous Israeli cases include a 26-year-old man who died and a 10-year-old boy left in critical condition in July 2024, both linked to the Gai Beach Water Park in Tiberias, leading to its precautionary closure.