Volunteers in Bahrain Sign Up for Vaccine Trial

A picture shows the Manama's repurposed convention center, in which 6,000 people are participating in a large-scale trial of a Chinese-sponsored vaccine for the Covid-19 coronavirus, on August 27, 2020 in the Bahraini capital.(Photo by Mazen Mahdi / AFP)
A picture shows the Manama's repurposed convention center, in which 6,000 people are participating in a large-scale trial of a Chinese-sponsored vaccine for the Covid-19 coronavirus, on August 27, 2020 in the Bahraini capital.(Photo by Mazen Mahdi / AFP)
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Volunteers in Bahrain Sign Up for Vaccine Trial

A picture shows the Manama's repurposed convention center, in which 6,000 people are participating in a large-scale trial of a Chinese-sponsored vaccine for the Covid-19 coronavirus, on August 27, 2020 in the Bahraini capital.(Photo by Mazen Mahdi / AFP)
A picture shows the Manama's repurposed convention center, in which 6,000 people are participating in a large-scale trial of a Chinese-sponsored vaccine for the Covid-19 coronavirus, on August 27, 2020 in the Bahraini capital.(Photo by Mazen Mahdi / AFP)

In a Bahrain exhibition center, Mohammed al-Blooshi and other masked volunteers wait for a dose of a Chinese trial vaccine.

"It is a service to humanity," says Blooshi, one of thousands in the country set to participate in the study.

Chinese drug giant Sinopharm began testing a Covid-19 vaccine in Bahrain in August after starting a similar trial on 15,000 subjects in the United Arab Emirates a month earlier, AFP reported.

The randomized, double-blind trial of 6,000 people is still recruiting healthy men and women as volunteers to test the vaccine's efficacy and safety in a large cross-section of the population.

The trial is due to finish next July, while the overall study is forecast to be completed by September 2021, according to the US National Library of Medicine.

"It's a very small thing to give back to the country," Blooshi tells AFP, as other volunteers give blood or fill out forms.

More than 30 potential vaccines are currently being tested on humans across the globe in the hope of ending a pandemic that has now killed more than 850,000 people, according to an AFP tally.

Researchers in the Bahrain study will look at how many patients contract the virus after receiving two doses of the vaccine, as well as examine any adverse reactions.

Novel coronavirus patients are excluded from the trial, as are pregnant women and those with suppressed immune systems.

Health ministry official Jaleela Sayed Jawad said roughly one-third of the final number of participants had received shots so far.

"Between doses, we will continue to monitor them either by calling them over the phone or, if needed, direct visits," she said.

Bahrain, home to some 1.5 million people, has recorded more than 51,500 novel coronavirus cases, including 190 deaths.

Mohammed Abdulbaqi, another volunteer, said he signed up for the trial "to give something back".

"We hope this pandemic ends and we return to our normal lives," the 25-year-old said as medical teams bustled around the repurposed convention center in the capital Manama.

Sinopharm executive Liu Jingzhen told Chinese state broadcaster CCTV in July that he had personally been injected with the vaccine.

"We are making smooth progress," he told CCTV, adding that the vaccine "should be available on the market before the end of the year."

In Bahrain, a doctor involved in the trial urged more volunteers to come forward.

"The long hours we have spent treating and testing people all over the country would go to waste if we did not have a vaccination to protect us and the next generation," Haneen al-Boosta told AFP.

"We encourage everyone to stay safe... and to be part of a trial."



Qatar's Emir Tells Sharaa 'Urgent Need' for Inclusive Syrian Government

This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on January 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) showing Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani a view of Damascus from Qasyoun mountain. (Photo by SANA / AFP)
This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on January 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) showing Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani a view of Damascus from Qasyoun mountain. (Photo by SANA / AFP)
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Qatar's Emir Tells Sharaa 'Urgent Need' for Inclusive Syrian Government

This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on January 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) showing Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani a view of Damascus from Qasyoun mountain. (Photo by SANA / AFP)
This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on January 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) showing Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani a view of Damascus from Qasyoun mountain. (Photo by SANA / AFP)

Visiting Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani emphasized the "urgent need" to form an inclusive Syrian government during a meeting Thursday with the country's new interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, the Qatari royal court said.

The emir's trip to Damascus -- the first by a head of state since the opposition toppled president Bashar al-Assad less than two months ago -- comes a day after Sharaa was appointed interim president for an unspecified transitional period.

It also follows a visit by Qatar's prime minister this month.

The emir "stressed the urgent need to form a government representing all spectrums" of Syrian society in order "to consolidate stability and move forward with reconstruction, development and prosperity projects,” the royal court statement said, congratulating Sharaa on his appointment.

Syria's new authorities on Wednesday said Sharaa had also been tasked with forming a transitional legislature. They announced the dissolution of all armed groups involved in Assad's overthrow, as well as the former government's army.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani said discussions with the Qatari delegation included reconstruction in the country devastated by nearly 14 years of civil war.

"We discussed a comprehensive framework for bilateral cooperation concerning reconstruction," Shibani said during a press conference with Qatari Minister of State at the foreign ministry, Mohammed al-Khulaifi.

He said their talks covered "vital sectors including infrastructure... investment and banking services, paving the way for economic recovery, health and education.”