Editor's Note: Some linked articles may be behind subscription paywalls.
Read the latest news from around the Middle East Africa region.
Israel Struggling With COVID-19 Spread
As the country announces plans to reopen for some tour groups, Israel — once a global leader in COVID-19 vaccinations — is dealing with surges in coronavirus cases that Bloomberg warns could be an omen of what's to come for the rest of the world.
"The nation of 9 million became the test case for reopening society and the economy in April when much of Europe and the U.S. were still in some form of lockdown," the news outlet reported. "Yet Israel now shows how the calculus is changing in places where progress was fastest. It’s no longer just about whether people get coronavirus, but also how badly they get it and ensuring that vaccines are still working as the highly infectious Delta variant threatens to undermine immunity."
Turkey Offers Extra Vaccines for Travelers
Turkish officials are offering shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to those who received the Chinese Sinovac vaccine but seek to travel to Western countries that haven't approved that particular shot, Reuters reports.
"More than six million of those booster doses have been administered, and the ministry said on Monday that people who had been given a booster dose of Pfizer could receive a second Pfizer shot if needed for travel," the news outlet reports.
Saudi Arabia Reopens for Pilgrims
The New York Times reports Saudi Arabian officials have reopened Mecca to travelers looking to make religious pilgrimages as of early August, but those travelers must show proof of vaccination.
"As the pandemic spread last year, Saudi Arabia barred travelers from abroad from the main pilgrimage, the hajj, which attracts millions of pilgrims in normal years, spreading disappointment across the Muslim world,"the newspaper reports. "Devout Muslims who are physically and financially able are required to perform the hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, at least once during their lives."
Middle East Air Travel Remains Well Below Average
The latest data from the International Air Transport Association shows air travel to the Middle East is still "drastically behind pre-COVID levels," Arab News reports.
"Total demand for air travel in July 2021 — measured in revenue passenger kilometers — was down 53.1 percent compared to July 2019," the news outlet reports. This represents an improvement from June when demand was 60% below June 2019 levels. Middle Eastern airlines posted a 74.5 percent demand drop in July compared to July 2019, surpassing the 79.2 percent decrease in June, versus the same month in 2019."