Jerusalem, July 14 (IANS) Israel has so far vaccinated 172,000 teenagers aged between 12 and 15, or 30.3 per cent of the age group, against COVID-19, the country's Ministry of Health said.

Meanwhile, 88 per cent of people aged 50 and over in Israel, or about 2.16 million, have been vaccinated.

To date, 5.73 million people in Israel have received the Pfizer vaccine, accounting for 61.4 per cent of the total population, according to the ministry, Xinhua reported.

The vaccination campaign in Israel began on December 20, 2020, with the first phase targeting medical staff, people aged over 65, and chronic patients.

On Monday, the ministry instructed four health maintenance organizations to start offering the third doses of the COVID-19 vaccine for adults with weak immune systems.

--IANS int/kr