Czech president asks Israeli counterpart for help organising Covid-19 vaccinations

President Miloš Zeman has asked his Israeli counterpart to share advice and know-how to organise a vaccine campaign against Covid-19, he told the news site Blesk, about a week before he himself is due to get inoculated.

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš earlier announced that the Czech Republic has vaccinated more than 40,000 people this month, mainly frontline medical workers, the elderly and infirmed. Israel has outpaced the rest of the world in rolling out a vaccination drive.

On Sunday Mr Babiš said in a press statement that the Czech state does not need foreign help, reacting in part to a call by the opposition Christian Democrats to seek aide from neighboring states as this country has among the highest rate of new Covid-19 infections in the world.

There are concerns that many regional hospitals in particular lack capacity to handle an anticipated influx of patients due to greater social contact during the winter holidays.