Nearly 500 Peshmerga and Asayish receive first dose of COVID-19 vaccine

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Approximately 500 members of the Kurdistan Region’s Peshmerga forces on Monday received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine as part of the government’s focus on priority groups, a health official told Kurdistan 24.

As part of the national vaccination program, the Region’s health authorities have prioritized certain groups to receive their jabs first, including health care workers, elderly citizens with underlying conditions, and members of the security forces.

The security forces who received the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines are from the Peshmerga and Asayish (internal security forces), according to Dr. Ahmed Palani, the head of Erbil’s Periphery Health Directorate, who spoke to Kurdistan 24 on Monday.

Four hundred of the Peshmerga deployed to the Pirde (Altun Kupri) front south of Erbil were vaccinated, while another 100 Asayish stationed at Sherawa Checkpoint between Erbil and Kirkuk were also given their first doses, Palani said.

The Kurdistan Region began its vaccination program in early March following the arrival of the Chinese-made Sinopharm, which was given first to healthcare workers. Seniors in Erbil began to receive their jabs in April.

As of April 18, 55,820 vaccines had been been delivered to the Kurdistan Region and health workers had administered more than 80 percent of the available doses, according to the regional health ministry.

Editing by Joanne Stocker-Kelly