Bahrain's king receives COVID-19 vaccine
King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa was vaccinated days after Bahrain approved use of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine.
Bahrain’s 70-year-old king, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, was vaccinated on Wednesday evening, state media reported, making him one of the first world leaders to receive a coronavirus vaccine.
“God has endowed Bahrain with a society with a high level of awareness and keenness to adhere to all precautionary measures and directives issued by the national medical taskforce to combat the coronavirus, which had a great impact on the Kingdom’s ability to limit its spread within the community,” the king said in a statement carried by the Bahrain News Agency.
Bahrain approved the use of the Chinese-manufactured Sinopharm’s vaccine on Sunday, citing early data that indicated it was 86% effective. Bahrain also gave emergency-use authorization to the Pfizer vaccine earlier this month, making it the second country after the United Kingdom to do so.
The island kingdom announced last week that citizens and residents ages 18 and older would receive a vaccine free of charge. On Thursday, the Bahrain Health Ministry tweeted there was “remarkable turnout” following the launch of the nationwide vaccination campaign.
