High Turnout to Receive Vaccines in Libya

A man receives a vaccine shot in Libya. (Reuters)
A man receives a vaccine shot in Libya. (Reuters)
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High Turnout to Receive Vaccines in Libya

A man receives a vaccine shot in Libya. (Reuters)
A man receives a vaccine shot in Libya. (Reuters)

Authorities in Libya have announced a high turnout by citizens to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, just days after launching the national inoculation campaign.

Libya received 160,000 doses in April, and the prime minister received his first shot live on television.

Head of the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) Bader Al-Din Al-Najjar told Reuters that as more people receive the jab, the number of deaths and severe cases would drop.

Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh launched the vaccination program last week, calling it a "blessed day" in the fight against COVID-19 after he received his first shot.

Libya received around 100,000 doses of the Russian Sputnik. It also received shipments from Turkey.

Health Minister Ali Al-Zanati said previously the government has so far ordered enough doses to inoculate 1.4 million of the country's more than seven million people.

The Libyan National Center for Disease Control said that more than 400,000 registered to receive the vaccine in more than 400 centers across the country.

Libya has reported more than 170,000 cases and almost 3,000 deaths.

However, UN envoys believe the figures to be higher.



Egypt Says Israel-EU Agreement Has Not Increased Aid to Gaza

Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Badr Abdelatty arrives for a meeting of Palestinian and Israeli foreign ministers on the sidelines of the EU-Southern Neighborhood Ministerial Meeting at the EU Council in Brussels, Belgium, 14 July 2025. (EPA)
Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Badr Abdelatty arrives for a meeting of Palestinian and Israeli foreign ministers on the sidelines of the EU-Southern Neighborhood Ministerial Meeting at the EU Council in Brussels, Belgium, 14 July 2025. (EPA)
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Egypt Says Israel-EU Agreement Has Not Increased Aid to Gaza

Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Badr Abdelatty arrives for a meeting of Palestinian and Israeli foreign ministers on the sidelines of the EU-Southern Neighborhood Ministerial Meeting at the EU Council in Brussels, Belgium, 14 July 2025. (EPA)
Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Badr Abdelatty arrives for a meeting of Palestinian and Israeli foreign ministers on the sidelines of the EU-Southern Neighborhood Ministerial Meeting at the EU Council in Brussels, Belgium, 14 July 2025. (EPA)

Egypt's foreign minister said on Monday that the flow of aid into Gaza has not increased despite an agreement last week between Israel and the European Union that should have had that result.

"Nothing has changed (on the ground)," Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told reporters ahead of the EU-Middle East meeting in Brussels on Monday.

The EU's top diplomat said on Thursday that the bloc and Israel agreed to improve Gaza's humanitarian situation, including increasing the number of aid trucks and opening crossing points and aid routes.

Asked what steps Israel has taken, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar referred to an understanding with the EU but did not provide details on implementation.

Asked if there were improvements after the agreement, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told reporters that the situation in Gaza remains "catastrophic".

"There is a real catastrophe happening in Gaza resulting from the continuation of the Israeli siege," he said.

Safadi said Israel allowed the entry of 40 to 50 trucks days ago from Jordan but that was "far from being sufficient" for the besieged enclave.

EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said ahead of Monday's meeting that there have been some signs of progress on Gaza aid but not enough improvement on the ground.

Israel's continued military operations and blockade have left the entire population of 2.3 million people in Gaza facing acute food insecurity, with nearly half a million at risk of famine by the end of September, a joint United Nations report said last month.