As Israel enters a third stalemate against the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said there will be enough vaccines to inoculate all citizens over the age of 16 by the end of March, according to a report.
“We will be the first country to emerge from the coronavirus,” Netanyahu said Thursday night, the Jerusalem Post reported. “We will vaccinate all relevant populations and anyone can be vaccinated.”
He said he expects another shipment of vaccines to arrive on Sunday, with many more to follow, adding that an agreement has been reached with Pfizer to send more and faster doses, turning Israel into a “model nation” for how to beat the outbreak.
“This is a discovery that will bring us out of the coronavirus crisis and bring us back to life,” Netanyahu told reporters. “This is how we will open the economy, we will return to work, to the synagogue … to the lives we love and miss.”
He added that Israel will “share with Pfizer and humanity as a whole statistics that will help develop strategies to defeat the virus.” We can do this because our health care system is one of the most advanced in the world. “
The Ministry of Health later clarified that only “general data” will be provided to Pfizer, including data on pandemic morbidity. No personal data will be published, he said.
Netanyahu said he had spoken 17 times with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, including on the last day, the Jerusalem Post reported.
On Thursday morning, health officials said 1,590,000 Israelis received the first blows – about 17 percent of the population.
The last blockade, which began on Friday, will last at least two weeks.