By Zuleikha Ahmed
22:06:21

Palestinians were outraged after the deal to accept more than a million doses approaching their expiration date from Israel become public.

The Palestinian Authority Health Ministry in Ramallah officially returned to Israel 90,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses. This was the initial batch in a 1.4 million-dose swap deal that infuriated Palestinians.

Many took to social media with complaints that the doses were “about to expire”, prompting the Palestinian Authority to cancel the swap deal on Friday.

PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, buckling under the tremendous public pressure, ordered the deal cancelled.

Palestinians accused high-ranking PA officials of trying to profit from the deal. The PA Civil Affairs Minister Hussein Al-Sheikh issued a statement distancing himself from it, and others followed suit.

Israeli officials announced the deal early last Friday, saying they could provide the doses to the PA as their expiration date nears.

The Health Ministry in Ramallah had announced the delivery “in the coming days” of 1 million vaccine doses, but no mention was made regarding an agreement with the Jewish state. The ministry, instead, issued a statement saying that Pfizer played a significant role in helping “to accelerate the vaccination campaign.”

The situation was exacerbated due to the confusion, lack of transparency, and a lack of information coming from the PA’s own Health Ministry. Palestinians found out about the vaccine swap deal and the expiration date from Israeli officials and media.