Saudi Arabia’s King Salman received the first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in Neom, Saudi Press Agency reported Friday.
“Today, the king received the vaccine in order to prevent him from receiving the virus, and this initiative affirms the Kingdom’s policy is always prevention before treatment,” Health Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah was quoted as saying by Arab News.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Receives 1st Dose of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccine.https://t.co/SLJEVzcvIi#SPAGOV pic.twitter.com/5s12QhByQw
— SPAENG (@Spa_Eng) January 8, 2021
In December last year, Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received the first COVID-19 vaccine administered in the Kingdom, as part of the national coronavirus vaccination plan being implemented by the country’s health ministry.
The country’s deputy premier, minister of defense and Minister of Culture Prince Badr Bin Farhan also received the vaccine shot.
Saudi Arabia has reported a total of 363,582 infections and 6,282 fatalities linked to the coronavirus so far.
The virus outbreak has claimed more than 1.9 million lives in 191 countries and regions since last December.
