Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a fervent appeal on Tuesday to the 570,000 people over 50 years old in Israel who have not yet been vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Almost 100 percent of the deaths and severe cases are concentrated in this group,” the prime minister said, speaking at a vaccination facility in Jerusalem where the 4 millionth person in Israel had just been vaccinated.
“Not only are you saving yourselves, if you do not go to be vaccinated then many of you will become very sick, and you will be a challenge for our hospitals, and then we will be compelled to impose a new lockdown,” he added.
Netanyahu, who was joined by Israeli Minister of Health Yuli Edelstein and Jerusalem’s Mayor Moshe Lion, offered more reasons to get the shot.
Moreover, he said, the Jewish state will soon issue “Green Passports,” which will be available to all those for whom seven days have passed since receiving the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. These passport holders will be able to attend theaters, sporting events, restaurants and other public venues, as well as travel internationally.