The Palestinian Authority decided on Monday to send its unvaccinated civil servants on unpaid leave, while Hamas offered a financial reward to those who get the jab.
The decisions came as Palestinian health officials expressed concern at the low number of Palestinians who are heeding calls to receive the vaccines against corona.
So far, 712,501 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip have received the vaccine, according to the PA Ministry of Health, but only 439,000 received two doses, the ministry said.
PA Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh again appealed to Palestinians to get vaccinated. In opening remarks at the weekly meeting of the PA cabinet in Ramallah, he announced the decision to give unpaid leave to civil servants who did not receive the vaccine “until the end of the epidemic.”
“Not receiving vaccinations is not personal freedom, as your freedom ends when you cause harm to the health of others, especially the most vulnerable groups such as the sick and the elderly who are more vulnerable to the virus,” Shtayyeh said.
He urged Palestinians who have not yet received the vaccine to quickly head to the vaccination centers in light of the increasing rise in infections from the Delta variant.
Shtayyeh warned that the upsurge in the number of infections would prompt his government to return to various restrictions and measures, as was the case in the past. “Most of the infected cases are people who have not received vaccinations,” he added.
Shtayyeh said that he will later chair a meeting of the Palestinian National Emergency Committee to assess the epidemiological situation and discuss ways to confront the new wave of the virus.
PA Minister of Health Mai Alkaila announced on Monday the registration of five deaths as a result of COVID – three in the Gaza Strip, one in Jenin and another in Salfit, near Nablus.
Over the past 24 hours, 1,366 new corona cases were discovered in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, she said, with nearly half discovered in Hamas-ruled Gaza.
According to Alkaila, the recovery rate from corona reached 96.3%, while the percentage of active infections was 2.6%, and the death rate 1.1% of the total infections.
The minister pointed out that there are 31 patients with corona in intensive care rooms, while 96 patients are being treated in corona centers and departments in hospitals in the West Bank, including seven who are connected to artificial respirators.
In Gaza, meanwhile, the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry announced that it would be holding a drawing for financial rewards among people who get vaccinated.
The decision came in light of the spread of the Delta variant there.
“There has been a steady increase in the number of infections in recent weeks,” said Majdi Dahir, a senior Ministry of Health official, adding that Gaza was now witnessing the third wave of corona. He predicted that there will be an unprecedented increase in the number of infections in the coming weeks.
Dahir blamed a failure to adhere to pandemic restrictions and the “limited demand for vaccination” for the rising number of infections.
He pointed out that only 130,000 elderly residents of Gaza have thus far received the vaccine, and Palestinians to get vaccinated in order to curb the spread of the virus.
“All vaccines available in the Gaza Strip are safe, and international studies have proven that they protect against disease,” Dahir said. “The pandemic has not yet ended in the Gaza Strip.”
Ashraf al-Qidra, a spokesman for the Health Ministry in Gaza, said that the Delta mutation has officially entered coastal enclave, and that the residents of Gaza will have no choice but to adhere to preventive measures in all aspects of life or seek to receive a vaccine.
He said that all employees in ministries and government institutions have been instructed to receive the vaccine, and warned that legal measures will be taken against anyone who violates the order.
The Gaza-based Health Ministry announced that it will launch a campaign starting on August 25 to vaccinate Palestinians over 55.
The ministry said that 10 of those who receive the vaccine will each be entitled to a financial reward of $200. At the end of the campaign, three of those who received the vaccine will be selected to receive a financial reward of NIS 10,000 per person.