Coronavirus: Mike Pompeo among Aipac guests who may have been exposed to deadly illness

Lobby group co-operating with health authorities after group from New York added to self-quarantine list

A leading US lobby group has sent a warning that people who attended its recent conference may have been exposed to coronavirus — including the US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo.

In an email to conference guests, speakers and staff, as well as offices on Capitol Hill, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) warned that a group of attendees from New York “was potentially in contact prior to the conference with an individual who contracted coronavirus”.

Aipac’s email said the group “has been added to the self-quarantine list”, and that while nobody who came to the conference is yet known to have tested positive for the virus, the organisation is co-ordinating with the Centres for Disease Control and the New York Health Department.

According to the email, The Washington DC Health Department considers the incident a “low-risk exposure” and has told Aipac there is no reason to “sound the alarm”.

The incident comes as coronavirus continues to spread in the US. The first known death outside Washington state has been confirmed in California, which has now declared a state of emergency.

Aipac is an influential pro-Israel lobbying group that advocates for a close Israeli-American relationship, and appearances at its annual conferences are usually considered a standard part of any presidential campaign.

It is a controversial organisation, which some on the left in particular accuse of exerting undue influence in service of a conservative foreign policy agenda and political candidates who would help enact one.

Mr Pompeo spoke at the conference on 2 March, telling the audience that “anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism” and rejoicing in the signing of a new decree affirming Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights: “What a truly great two days for two great nations”.

Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders did not attend this year’s conference, while his fellow frontrunner Joe Biden appeared at the conference in the form of a video.

In it, Biden warned attendees that the Israeli government’s aggressive annexation and settlement-building plans were “choking” any chance for peace and undermining the US-Israeli relationship.