Ramallah, Aug 16 (IANS): A senior health official has confirmed that 70 per cent of the active Covid-19 cases in the Palestinian territories are of the Delta variant.

Palestine might have already entered the fourth wave of the disease, as more infections and hospitalisations are being logged every day, Wesam Sbaihat, the official in charge of Covid-19 affairs in the Health Ministry, told state radio Voice of Palestine.

There has been a noticeable increase in vaccinations following the Palestinian government's decision to make vaccination compulsory for civil servants and private employees, Sbaihat added.

On Sunday, Minister of Health Mai al-Kaila told a news briefing in the West Bank city of Ramallah that she expects a social spread of the Delta variant coincides with the start of the new school year in the Palestinian territories, reports Xinhua news agency.

The Palestinian government has not yet decided on closing cities and schools in the West Bank, said Al-Kaila, noting that 82 per cent of school teachers had already been vaccinated.

One fatality, 377 new Covid-19 cases and 126 recoveries was registered in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in the last 24 hours, said the Health Ministry said on Sunday.

It said in a statement that 637,963 people were vaccinated in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip so far, including 428,257 who received the second dose of a vaccine.