Israel PM Neftali Bennett urges elderly residents to get COVID-19 booster shots

Battling an uptick of COVID cases, Israel has asked its elderly citizens to get a third, booster shot of vaccine immediately. Last week, health authorities in the country gave a go-ahead to a booster shot for all people over the age of 60 and who received their second dose more than five months ago. Since the authorization, more than 262,500 Israelis have received the ‘extra’ shot.

Despite the high numbers, Israeli PM Neftali Bennett released an audio message urging seniors to get the booster dose on Sunday. In the recorded message, the leader warned that in the next two to three weeks anyone who is over the age of 60 and has not yet received their third vaccine is six times more likely to become seriously ill from the coronavirus, compared to those who are five days past their third shot. In addendum to getting jabbed, Bennett also urged the elderly population to exercise extreme caution until they get the third dose. This implied that they should refrain from going to crowded places, always wear a mask etc. Since the outbreak, the country has registered over 939,360 cases and more than 6,668 fatalities since the latest tally by Wordometers. 

The US restricts travelling to Israel

Seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases, the US State Department has now added Israel to its "Do Not Travel" list on Tuesday. The list is based on several factors including the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Travel Health Notices (THNd), and other secondary factors such as flight availability, restrictions on US citizen entry, and COVID-19 test results. Furthermore, many other countries have also categorised Israel in the Level Four category due to the rising cases of COVID-19. Some of these countries are Thailand, Iceland, Laos, Eswatini, France, French Polynesia and Aruba.

Earlier, the US Government had cautioned the citizens to avoid travelling to France as well due to a spike in COVID infections. A similar warning from the US Centers for Disease Control, the country's top medical body, prompted the State Department to issue a "Level 4: Do Not Travel" travel advisory for France. 

Image: AP