The Peninsula Appreciates Qatar's Continuous Efforts to Confront COVID-19 Pandemic

Doha, August 26 (QNA) - The Peninsula English newspaper praised, in its editorial on Thursday, the continuous efforts made by the State of Qatar through the national program for vaccination against the Coronavirus COVID-19, noting Qatar's keenness to vaccinate the population as soon as possible. In this regard, the newspaper highlighted the approval of the Ministry of Public of Health (MoPH) to give a third of either the Moderna or PfizerBioNTech vaccines to individuals with severe immunodeficiency and those who are particularly vulnerable to serious complications from COVID-19 infection. The newspaper said that the State of Qatar was among the first countries to roll out the COVID-19 vaccines and has successfully implemented a mass inoculation drive, with over 70 percent of its population fully vaccinated. The newspaper pointed out that over two million people are now fully vaccinated in Qatar. Among the population eligible for vaccination (aged 12 and above), over 81% are fully vaccinated, while about 93% have received at least the first dose, the paper added. The newspaper stressed that the combined impact of COVID-19 restrictions and increasing vaccination rates, and peoples compliance with precautionary measures, has resulted in a consistent reduction in the number of new daily infections in the country. However, health officials have urged continued precautions saying two highly contagious and highly virulent strains of the virus are actively circulating in the community, the paper said. The newspaper underlined that there are still some people who are eligible but have not received the jabs, adding that the MoPH has requested the unvaccinated population to act now and protect themselves and their family members and thus help the country return to normal life. The Peninsula concluded its editorial by stressing that the public must not let their guard down and must continue to follow all the preventive measures. (QNA)