Libya Steps up Tripoli Jab Drive as Virus Caseload Rises

Arab World

July 25th, 6:59am

Asharq Al-Awsat

People wait at a makeshift coronavirus vaccination and testing centre set up in the Libyan capital Tripoli. (AFP)

Libyan authorities on Saturday stepped up their vaccination campaign around the capital Tripoli, as coronavirus cases rise across the country. The health ministry has set up temporary centers in six districts of the capital, and AFP journalists saw long queues outside the tents on Saturday morning. "The campaign will continue until all the available doses are used," doctor Rawad Behelille told AFP in central Tripoli. Earlier this month, head of the Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid Dbeibah issued a decree instructing cafes and restaurants to close due to rising infections, while also suspending university lectures and weddings. Daily reported cases have reached several thousand in the past week, in a country with a population of around seven million. Libya has recorded over 229,600 coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic, including over 3,340 deaths. Fewer than 500,000 people have been vaccinated since the war-torn country's inoculation campaign started in April.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3097056/libya-steps-tripoli-jab-drive-virus-caseload-rises