Monkeypox cases in Israel surpass 200

Monkeypox cases in Israel have totaled 208, with 11 new cases detected in the past four days, the
country's Health Ministry said on Sunday.

So far, more than 2,000 people at risk have been vaccinated in Israel with a double-dose vaccine
against the virus, the ministry noted.

Israel in late July announced a vaccination program for risky populations, with the shipment of 5,600
doses produced by Danish firm Bavarian Nordic. The shipment of another 4,400 doses is expected to
arrive in September.

The ministry added it was considering expanding the vaccination criteria to allow increased
utilization of all doses as well as to purchase additional vaccine doses. ■

According to the latest data from the Health Ministry, 160 people have been diagnosed with the
virus in Israel since the beginning of the outbreak in May, while the World Health Organization has
reported over 25,800 confirmed cases across 70 non-endemic countries.

This image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) shows a
colorized transmission electron micrograph of monkeypox particles (red) found within an infected
cell (blue), cultured in the laboratory at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick,
Maryland. (NIAID via AP)

Monkeypox is characterized by a rash that can look like pimples or blisters, from which the virus can
be transmitted, normally through skin-to-skin contact.

The WHO declared the recent outbreak of the virus a global health emergency in July, labeling it an
“extraordinary event.”