Vaccination in Lebanon thehimalayantimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thehimalayantimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Saturday, 20 February, 2021 - 08:15
A woman takes a picture with her mobile phone as she receives the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19 at the American University of Beirut s medical center on February 14, 2021. Mohamed Azakir/Reuters Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat
More than 17,000 people have received the COVID-19 vaccine in Lebanon since the launch of the inoculation campaign less than a week ago, Health Advisor to the President Dr. Walid Khoury confirmed on Friday.
“No complications or side effects experienced from the vaccine have been registered so far,” the advisor said, adding that Lebanon is on the right track to implement the national plan for the vaccination drive.
The first batch of COVID-19 vaccines for Lebanon arrived in the country on February 13, 2021 as part of the World Bank-financed Lebanon Health Resilience Project (LHRP). This is also the first World Bank support for COVID-19 vaccination in the world. Lebanon officially launched the national vaccination campaign at Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut on February 14. The first to receive the vaccine was Dr. Mahmoud Hassoun, the head of the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. The second in line was beloved Lebanese actor, 93-year-old Salah Tizani. Together, they represent the priority groups which the campaign targets in the early phases of vaccination: frontline health workers, the elderly, and those with co-morbidities.
Scepticism is Lebanon s biggest hurdle as its COVID19 vaccination campaign got under way – Ya Libnan yalibnan.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from yalibnan.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Lebanon: Fair and transparent distribution of COVID19 vaccine key to real success
Image This is also the first World Bank support for COVID-19 vaccination in the world. Lebanon officially launched the national vaccination campaign at Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut on February 14. The first to receive the vaccine was Dr. Mahmoud Hassoun, the head of the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. The second in line was beloved Lebanese actor, 93-year-old Salah Tizani. Together, they represent the priority groups which the campaign targets in the early phases of vaccination: frontline health workers, the elderly, and those with co-morbidities.
“I’m telling everyone to come and get vaccinated and not be scared. Better to get vaccinated than to be knocked down by this deadly virus,” Tizani told the AFP. Despite the implementation challenges ahead, COVID-19 vaccination in Lebanon will save lives and support economic recovery in a country that urgently needs it.