Palestinian receive first vaccine shipment from Russia

The Palestinians received 10,000 doses of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine on Thursday to help jumpstart their COVID-19 inoculation campaign, officials said. Health Minister Mai Alkaila told Voice of Palestine Radio the supply would be enough to vaccinate 5,000 people, who would each be given two shots.

The shipment was flown into Israel and transported from there to Ramallah, the Palestinian hub city in the occupied West Bank.

Alkaila said a shipment of vaccines from China would also be arriving, but did not specify a date or which vaccine. A batch of around 37,000 doses from the COVAX global vaccine-sharing programme is expected later this month.

The West Bank, where 3.1 million Palestinians live, has reported 101,508 coronavirus cases, with 1,276 deaths. Gaza, with a population of two million, has registered more than 52,000 cases with 527 deaths.