Health Minister Firas Al-Hawari has reported that Jordan documented 163 cases of measles between April and June, emphasizing the continued efforts of the national vaccination campaign.

Speaking during a press conference on Monday to discuss the national vaccination campaign, Hawari stated that the current measles outbreak in Jordan is relatively small and not the first of its kind.

He emphasized the Ministry's objective, through the new vaccination program, to eradicate measles within Jordan, noting that measles cases began appearing in April. The Ministry's initial response involves swift intervention to vaccinate 120,000 individuals. Hawari explained that the rapid spread of the disease resulted from vaccination gaps caused by hesitancy among the public to receive vaccines.

He attributed this hesitancy to vaccine fatigue and concerns related to vaccine safety, which have been exacerbated over the past three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures, resulting in reduced vaccination rates.

Regarding the vaccination's safety, Hawari reassured the Jordanian population, stating, "The vaccine is safe and effective and has been used in Jordan since 2013."

He also clarified that the reports of deaths in another Arab country were unrelated to the vaccine but were due to medical errors. Hawari criticized what he termed "irresponsible" entities for spreading unfounded rumors about vaccine-related deaths in various countries.

The World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Jordan echoed the importance of vaccines, highlighting their role in saving millions of lives annually, with an estimated 3,000 to 5,000 lives saved each year.