Tunisia Reports Drop in COVID-19 Infections Amid High Inoculation Rates

Part of an intensive inoculation campaign in a school in Tunisia on September 11, 2021. (EPA)
Part of an intensive inoculation campaign in a school in Tunisia on September 11, 2021. (EPA)
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Tunisia Reports Drop in COVID-19 Infections Amid High Inoculation Rates

Part of an intensive inoculation campaign in a school in Tunisia on September 11, 2021. (EPA)
Part of an intensive inoculation campaign in a school in Tunisia on September 11, 2021. (EPA)

Tunisia did not record any new coronavirus-related deaths on October 11, for the first time in months as the country continues its vaccination drive, the health ministry announced on Wednesday.

The last few weeks saw a remarkable drop in death rates from COVID-19 complications compared with more than 250 daily fatalities in July and August.

Infections fell by an estimated 4.8 percent and did not exceed the limit of 230 new cases per day, the ministry added.

The total number of deaths recorded since the beginning of the pandemic is 25,046 and 682,953 recoveries.

The number of patients admitted to health institutions in the public and private sectors dropped to 689, including 13 new cases.

There are currently about 141 cases in intensive care units, while only 53 patients are on ventilators.

According to Riadh Daghfous, head of the scientific committee for the fight against the coronavirus, Tunisia is witnessing a gradual decline in COVID-related deaths thanks to the high rates of vaccination.

More than four million Tunisians have taken both shots, he affirmed, hoping they will reach five million by the end of October.

The ministry urged Tunisians, who haven’t gotten their jabs yet, to get vaccinated.



Large Gaza Food Convoy Violently Looted, UNRWA Says

A truck carries humanitarian aid destined for the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, at the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Israel, November 11, 2024. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo
A truck carries humanitarian aid destined for the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, at the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Israel, November 11, 2024. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo
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Large Gaza Food Convoy Violently Looted, UNRWA Says

A truck carries humanitarian aid destined for the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, at the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Israel, November 11, 2024. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo
A truck carries humanitarian aid destined for the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, at the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Israel, November 11, 2024. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo

A convoy of 109 trucks was violently looted on Nov. 16 after entering Gaza, resulting in the loss of 98 trucks in what aid workers say is one of the worst such incidents in the more than 13-month-old war, an UNRWA aid official told Reuters on Monday.

The convoy carrying food provided by UN agencies UNRWA and the World Food Program was instructed by Israel to depart at short notice via an unfamiliar route from Kerem Shalom crossing, Louise Wateridge, UNRWA Senior Emergency Officer told Reuters.

"This incident highlights the severity of access challenges of bringing aid into southern and central Gaza," she said, adding that injuries occurred in the incident.

"⁠The urgency of the crisis cannot be overstated; without immediate intervention, severe food shortages are set to worsen, further endangering the lives of over two million people who depend on humanitarian aid to survive," she said.

WFP and COGAT, the Israeli military agency that deals with Palestinian civilian affairs, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The agency says it does all it can to ensure that enough aid enters the coastal enclave, and that Israel does not prevent the entry of humanitarian aid.

A UN aid official said on Friday that Gaza aid access had reached a low point, with deliveries to parts of the besieged north of the enclave all but impossible.