Israel will become the first country in the world to roll out a fourth dose of the Covid vaccine to citizens aged over 60, prime minister Naftali Bennett has announced.
It comes amid concern over the spread of the Omicron variant in the country, with at least 340 cases reported so far.
A health ministry expert panel recommended the fourth shot on Tuesday, with Mr Bennett describing the decision as “great news that will help us overcome the Omicron wave that is spreading around the world”.
Health workers will also receive a fourth dose, Mr Bennett said.
While the Omicron variant can escape some of the antibodies conferred by two vaccine doses, a third or fourth dose is believed to offer a very high level of protection against severe disease.
Israel was one of the first countries to vaccinate large swathes of its population last year, but its roll-out has since slowed.
Just 63 per cent of its population of 9.3 million people has now been double jabbed – behind the UK and many countries in Europe.
The decision follows the first known death in Israel of a patient with the Omicron variant.
The Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba on Tuesday confirmed the death but said the man, in his sixties, had suffered from a number of serious pre-existing conditions.
“His morbidity stemmed mainly from pre-existing sicknesses and not from respiratory infection arising from the coronavirus,” it said.
Israel has already this week expanded a travel ban to countries including the United States, Germany, Italy, Turkey and Canada to try to curb the spread of the virus.
Defence minister Benny Gantz’s office said he ordered the military’s Home Front Command, which is tasked with anti-pandemic measures, to prepare for the eventuality of 5,000 new cases per day.
Israel’s government approved reducing office attendance by 50 per cent for public sector employees, Mr Bennett’s office said, to encourage more remote work.
