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Netanyahu's plan to donate vaccines to other countries suspended, awaits legal opinion

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said this week that as a gesture of goodwill, Israel would donate vaccine doses to the Palestinian Authority and a number of other countries.
A member of the Honduran Army observes as health workers begin the vaccination against COVID-19 with the Moderna vaccines in Tegucigalpa, on February 25, 2021. (Photo by Orlando SIERRA / AFP) (Photo by ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP via Getty Images)

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Feb. 25 halted the process of sending Moderna coronavirus vaccines to foreign countries, according to media reports. It appears that the decision to send vaccines abroad will need to be examined by Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit before it can be further carried out.  

Earlier in the day, Defense Minister Benny Gantz had called on Netanyahu to suspend the transfer of vaccines. Gantz demanded that the Security Cabinet be convened for deliberations before a decision is made. “This is not the first time that significant security and diplomatic decisions are made behind the back of the relevant officials, with possible harm to the security of the state, foreign relations and rule of law,” Gantz said.

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