Israel has reached an understanding with AstraZeneca to purchase about ten million doses of its coronavirus vaccine, Israel’s Health Ministry and AstraZeneca announced on Friday in a joint statement.

Israel will receive the vaccine following its delivery to the US and EU, with an initial supply expected to arrive in the first half of 2021, subject to the vaccine’s approval by regulatory authorities, Channel 12 News reported.

“This is a historic agreement led by the company’s local representation that will enable access to the vaccine for millions of Israeli citizens,” said Ohad Goldberg, chief executive of AstraZeneca Israel.

In other vaccine news, Israel’s Brilife vaccine, developed by the Israel Institute for Biological Research, is expected to be available to the public by the summer, according to a Channel 12 News report on Friday.

The first phase of clinical trials for Brilife began at the beginning of the month and to date, the volunteers who have received the vaccine have not experienced side effects. The Defense Ministry announced last month that Israel has begun mass-producing the vaccine – about 15 million does – in the hope that the clinical trials are successful.

Israel has also signed agreements to purchase vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna and is formulating a deal with Russia to purchase its Sputnik V vaccine, if proven successful.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)