free from the pandemic. An incredulous statement from the Israeli Health Ministry said the vaccines delivered to the Palestinians are ‘Identical in every way to the vaccines currently being administered to Israel’s citizens.’
As ever, it is hard to know the real reasons behind the Palestinian Authority’s U-turn, but the health of its people cannot have been at the top of its agenda.
It never is.
Millions in the UK have benefitted from Pfizer’s gold-standard vaccine, even when the doses were close to expiry. My own first dose was administered some months ago in London, as the empty vaccination centre was closing up for the day. The doctor who swept me into her cubicle told me that three minutes later my jab would need to be tossed in the bin.
Israel says the short shelf life of the vaccines it was sending had been known to the PA when the deal was struck. The initial batch of 90,000 was the closest to expiry, with subsequent batches due to expire some weeks later. Perhaps the idea that this deal represented ‘normalisation’ with Israel was too much for some on the Palestinian side, whose reaction gave their leaders cold feet.
Aside from passing up the opportunity to vaccinate 90,000 people in the next two weeks –and over a million before the end of the summer – the PA may also struggle to allay fears of corruption in how it distributes its vaccines. Convincing people to be vaccinated will also not be easy. According to last week’s poll by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research, only 40 per cent of Palestinians are willing to accept a vaccine when one is available, and 35 per cent are unwilling to get vaccinated at all.
This is exactly the sort of deal that richer countries around the world are being encouraged to make. Redistributing surplus vaccines is essential if we are to help poorer societies out of the pandemic sooner. But that can only work if they accept the help when it is offered.
To accept the Israeli vaccines would entail some level of acknowledgement; some level of gratitude. They just can't do it – and to hell with the health of the people.
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