Palestinian Authority reimposes lockdowns amid lack of vaccines
A year after the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in the Palestinian territories, the government reimposed total lockdown measures in several governorates in the West Bank amid the unprecedented rise in cases and deaths and the drained health care sector.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Israel officially launched on March 8 its vaccination campaign against COVID-19 for Palestinian laborers who hold work permits in Israel or in its settlements in the West Bank.
Staff at Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel’s paramedic and Red Cross service, vaccinated workers with the Moderna vaccine at checkpoints and military crossings and in the industrial areas in the West Bank. Around 700 Palestinian workers received the vaccine as part of a pilot campaign.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) had announced on Feb. 19 that it reached an agreement with Israel in which Israeli authorities would vaccinate 100,000 Palestinian workers.
Palestinian Ministry of Health spokesperson Kamal al-Shakhra said in statements to Palestine TV on March 8 that Palestinians and Israelis agreed on all details to vaccinate workers after deliberations between them, with the participation of the ministries of labor and health and the PA-affiliated General Authority of Civil Affairs.
