Lebanon administers first jabs of COVID-19 vaccine

An intensive care unit physician and a well-known 93-year-old comedian become the first to receive Pfizer-BioNTech dose

Lebanon administered on Sunday its first jabs of COVID-19 vaccine, with an intensive care unit physician and a well-known 93-year-old comedian becoming the first to receive PfizerBioNTech doses.

Lebanon launched its inoculation campaign a day after receiving the first batch of the vaccine - 28,500 doses from Brussels, near where Pfizer has a manufacturing facility. More were expected to arrive in the coming weeks.

The rollout will be monitored by the World Bank and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to ensure safe handling and fair and equitable access for all Lebanese.

Lebanon’s political, economic and health crises have converged, deepening the country’s troubles and public anger and mistrust of the long-serving ruling class.

The government failed to offer social safety nets or structural reform to secure international assistance.