Israel plans to offer monkeypox vaccines this week: PM

JERUSALEM, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Israel has purchased 10,000 monkeypox vaccine doses and will start offering them once the first batch arrives later this week, Prime Minister Yair Lapid said on Sunday.

Speaking at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, Lapid said that the first batch of some 5,000 vaccines is expected to arrive in the next few days.

"Upon the arrival of the vaccines, the Health Funds (Israeli public health organizations) will begin to vaccinate people at risk and relevant patients," Lapid said.

At least 105 cases have been recorded in Israel, Lapid said, adding that the PM's office and the Health Ministry are "following global information regarding the disease and are in touch with health authorities worldwide."

Israel signed a deal last Monday to purchase 10,000 doses of the vaccine produced by Bavarian Nordic, a Danish pharmaceutical company, according to a statement issued by the Health Ministry.

On Saturday, the World Health Organization declared the monkeypox outbreak to be a global health emergency, the highest alert the agency can issue.