Israel expands vaccination drive to people over 16

Israel's Health Ministry expanded its COVID-19 vaccination campaign to all citizens over the age of 16 on Thursday.The move was welcomed with relief by the Israeli public and people could be seen queuing at a centre in Tel Aviv.

"We were very fortunate to be able to schedule our vaccination as early as possible in order to get out of COVID situation and get our life back to pace," said Tal Ekroni, 31.

Israel has vaccinated around a third of its population of more than 9 million.But it has faced criticism for not including Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.Israel says it is prioritizing its own citizens.Under interim peace agreements, the Palestinian Authority is responsible for health care in the territories it administers but both sides are supposed to cooperate to combat epidemics.