Netanyahu pleads with over 50s to get vaccinated immediately

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is racing to vaccinate to offset the fast-spreading mutations of the coronavirus.

“The vaccination drive is our key” to lifting the restrictions, he says.

He says the British mutation accounts for 80% of all cases in Israel. Netanyahu says 97% of deaths and 93% of serious cases are among those over 50 years old.

If we manage to vaccinate those over 50, “then we are on our way to victory over the coronavirus,” he says.

Netanyahu says Israel aims to vaccinate 90% of those over 50 within two weeks. He says 77% in that age group have already received the shots.

He urges all Israelis to go get vaccinated.

Netanyahu says the vaccination drive will enable Israel’s economy to become “the fastest-growing in the world.”

The prime minister says Israel will begin gradually removing its lockdown restrictions next week, “but we will do it carefully.”

“We will exit cautiously,” he adds.