Hezbollah Secretary-General, Hassan Nasrallah, announced that he will not be taking the vaccine for COVID-19 upon its arrival in Lebanon because it was developed in the West.
Speaking in an interview on Sunday, Nasrallah insisted on his refusal to take the “American vaccine.” It is worth noting the company that developed the vaccine, BioNTech, is German.
It’s worth noting that the areas and communities where Hezbollah has a strong presence in were among the most heavily affected areas when the pandemic hit. The virus first arrived in Lebanon aboard a flight from Iran.
Similarly, Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun also refuses to get vaccinated, rather than set a good example as other world leaders are doing.
In a contradictory request, the Health Minister Hamad Hassan, who is Hezbollah‘s appointee, urged on Monday that people trust the government’s actions which he says are based on trustworthy medical information.
Minister Hassan has worked to acquire the vaccine for Lebanon, which is set to receive 2 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine in mid-February.
The amount will be enough to cover 20% of the population and will be prioritized for the most vulnerable individuals.
In related news, anti-vax Lebanese celebrities recently posted some questionable conspiracies about the vaccine dangerously misleading their followers.
We have a dedicated coronavirus section where you can find the latest news/updates about the pandemic in Lebanon, inform yourself with WHO-verified resources, and track the number of cases in Lebanon in real-time. Click here.
