25 Feb 2021 / 21:22 H.
(Adds details, context)
DAMASCUS, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Syria s health minister said on Thursday it had received COVID-19 vaccination doses from a friendly country and healthcare workers would start receiving inoculations next week.
Hassan Ghabash s comments, carried by state news agency SANA, did not specify which country provided the vaccines or how many doses had arrived.
Health officials had said Syria was engaged with Russia and China on vaccines but no bilateral deals have been announced yet.
China said earlier this month it would send 150,000 doses of vaccine to Syria as aid but a source told Reuters on Thursday those had not been delivered yet.