A 49-year-old Israeli man who had been quarantined after his travel from Mexico with flu-like symptoms, was confirmed on Tuesday to be infected with the virus, the website of local daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported.

This is the second case of the H1N2 virus reaching Israel.

Earlier, Israeli Health Ministry said in a statement that the 26-year-old Tomer Vajim who recently returned from Mexico was diagnosed with the virus, after two days of quarantine at the Laniado Hospital in Netanya. Vajim is in stable condition, according to Laniado Hospital sources.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to convene a special meeting Tuesday evening concerning the looming threat of swine flu in Israel.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has already instructed the ministry's director and other senior officials to prepare for handling of the issue.

Also on Tuesday, Israel Health Ministry decided to raise the preparedness level for swine flu from Phase 3 to Phase 4. The change in preparedness levels did not involve any serious operative changes, since the ministry had contingencies for such a situation, according to a statement released from the ministry.

Meanwhile, signs were posted at Israeli Ben-Gurion International airport, warning travelers arriving from Mexico to be on the alert for flu-like symptoms within a week of their return and to get medical help in that case.

On Monday, the World Health Organization raised its global alert level from Phase 3 to Phase 4, signaling the swine flu virus was spreading from human to human in community outbreaks, but it stopped short of declaring a full-blown pandemic.