Hospitals in the Syrian capital Damascus and the coastal province of Latakia have reached capacity due to rising coronavirus admissions, a health official said.

“We have started transferring Covid-19 patients from the province of Damascus to the (central) province of Homs, and from Latakia to the province of Tartus,” Tawfiq Hasaba, a health ministry official, was quoted as saying by Syrian state TV.

The move came after “hospitals in these areas reached capacity because of a large spike in coronavirus cases,” he added.

According to the World Health Organisation, only two percent of Syria's population has been at least partially vaccinated.

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