After more than a year of treating patients suffering with Covid-19 at a local hospital, Tunis nurse Meherzia Hammami, 54, was the first person to receive a vaccine against the coronavirus in Tunisia.
"It means a lot to me," said Ms Hammami, visibly moved.
She said she had cared for hundreds of patients, many of whom succumbed to the virus – including members of her own family.
The vaccination effort comes more than a year after the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in Tunisia. The country has since seen nearly 250,000 cases, with more than 8,300 deaths.
According to Red Crescent officials, 25 regional vaccine centres will begin inoculations on Saturday, and will target frontline health workers.
"This is a message of hope to Tunisians," said Abdelmoumen Samir, 62, an emergency room doctor who was among the six medical workers to receive the vaccine at a ceremony this morning.
Mr Samir said he hopes to inspire confidence in the system and encourage others to get the vaccine.
Cases surged in Tunisia in January and the country was put on a full lockdown for four days around the 10th anniversary of the Tunisian Revolution.
Tunis Regional Health Director Tarek Ben Naceur told The National that the initial doses will be distributed to healthcare workers across the country.
"We are following the World Health Organisation recommendations," Mr Ben Naceur said, "so we will be starting with healthcare workers.
"We will be giving priority to those having direct contact with Covid-19 patients.”
Health workers who perform Covid-19 tests at sites around the country will also receive the jab.
Vaccine diplomacy
An initial 30,000 doses of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine arrived in Tunis earlier this month, with another 500,000 vaccine doses due in the coming weeks.
This includes 96,300 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, expected within the fortnight, and up to 100,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine, donated by China.
Regional hubs have been created, with capacity to vaccinate up to 800 people a day, Mr Ben Naceur said.
But a major hurdle to administering those doses is getting people to sign up.
Tunisians can only register to receive the vaccination through an online system, called Evax, the government's first all-digital health system.
To date, just 500,000 people have signed up – out of a government target of five million, said Mr Ben Naceur.
While most households in the wealthier cities on the coast have internet access, internet saturation in the poorer interior of the country, which has been hit harder by the virus, is considerably lower.
"At least 50 per cent of the population needs to be registered," Mr Ben Naceur said.
“We believe registrations will increase once people see big officials getting their shots and check with healthcare workers.”
Tunisia's vaccination campaign failed to launch in February when a shipment of the Pfizer vaccine, supplied by the international Covax vaccine initiative, was delayed.
Since then, a political row between Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi and President Kais Saied has led each to aggressively pursue the procurement of vaccine doses in a bid to win over popular opinion.
But many see the diplomatic competition as a boon – if it means more doses of the vaccine will be getting into the actual arms of Tunisian citizens.
"I see it as a positive thing," said Mr Ben Naceur.
"It has become a competition to see who can be more effective at bringing in the vaccine."
Regardless of the squabble, he believes the Tunisian people will come out on top.
Ghaya Ben Mbarek contributed reporting
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
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AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Hurricanes 31-31 Lions
Wellington Hurricanes:
Tries: Gibbins, Laumape, Goosen, Fifita tries, Barrett
Conversions: Barrett (4)
Penalties: Barrett
British & Irish Lions:
Tries: Seymour (2), North
Conversions: Biggar (2)
Penalties: Biggar (4)
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
4) The campaign uses the hashtag #donate_hope
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 2 (Vecino 65', Barella 83')
Verona 1 (Verre 19' pen)
INDIA SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper), Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Vijay Shankar, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Siraj and Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Scotland v Ireland:
Scotland (15-1): Stuart Hogg; Tommy Seymour, Huw Jones, Sam Johnson, Sean Maitland; Finn Russell, Greig Laidlaw (capt); Josh Strauss, James Ritchie, Ryan Wilson; Jonny Gray, Grant Gilchrist; Simon Berghan, Stuart McInally, Allan Dell
Replacements: Fraser Brown, Jamie Bhatti, D'arcy Rae, Ben Toolis, Rob Harley, Ali Price, Pete Horne, Blair Kinghorn
Coach: Gregor Townsend (SCO)
Ireland (15-1): Rob Kearney; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Jack Conan, Sean O'Brien, Peter O'Mahony; James Ryan, Quinn Roux; Tadhg Furlong, Rory Best (capt), Cian Healy
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Dave Kilcoyne, Andrew Porter, Ultan Dillane, Josh van der Flier, John Cooney, Joey Carbery, Jordan Larmour
Coach: Joe Schmidt (NZL)
The specs
Engine: 2.3-litre, turbo four-cylinder
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Power: 300hp
Torque: 420Nm
Price: Dh189,900
On sale: now
