The security detail of senior officials, including those working in the offices of PA President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, have also received their shot, according to the PA Ministry of Health.
Members of the PLO Executive Committee aged over 65 and cabinet ministers have received the vaccine, the ministry said.
“Workers of the Central Elections Commission who are in direct contact with the public in the preparation for the elections” have also been vaccinated, the ministry added.
It confirmed that the PA had sent 200 vaccines to Jordan.
The doses were sent to Amman at the request of the Jordanian Royal Court and with the approval of the office of Abbas, the ministry said.
The PA ministry said that it has so far received 12,000 vaccine doses, of which 2,000 were sent to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
It said that 9,800 doses for the West Bank were sufficient to vaccinate 4,900 people.
According to the ministry, 90% of the total number of vaccines in the West Bank were given to medical teams working in intensive care units in public and private hospitals, as well as workers at COVID-19 treatment centers, and employees working at the ministry offices in Ramallah and Nablus.
The ministry added that vaccines were also given to “embassies of some countries in the State of Palestine.”
The statement came a day after the Palestinian Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) group demanded that the PA premier form an investigation committee to scrutinize the process of vaccine distribution in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
“Despite repeated calls, available information and observations indicate that many persons have been vaccinated in breach of the prioritization criteria, which gives priority to the medical staff, the elderly and the sick,” CSOs said in a statement.
“The [PA] government continues to ignore the calls to disclose its COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan and the list of persons who received the vaccines, both from medical staff and others. It continues to refrain from announcing the mechanisms, measures and points of distribution, and from holding accountable those who abused their public positions. This creates an environment for nepotism and selfishness.”
The group also accused the PA government of failing to make public the details of the process of purchasing the vaccines, the exporting companies, the detailed budgets and specific delivery dates.
“The CSOs believe that the disorganization in managing the vaccine distribution file and the absence of a clear and publicized plan shall have severe repercussions on the Palestinian society,” it cautioned. “Available information and observation reveal that the process is conducted within a framework of cronyism and contacts, giving priority to personal interests at the expense of public interest.”