AMMAN — Jordan's Interior Ministry on Saturday said that the guest workers who have not received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines will be deported starting from Dec. 15.

The ministry said in a statement that the decision aims to protect public health, noting that prompting expatriates to get vaccinated protects them against future infections and virus transmission.

Guest workers are allowed to receive the doses for free, without the need to present their residency or work permits, it added.

Jordan currently hosts more than 3.5 million guest workers from Syria, Egypt, Palestine, Iraq, Libya and Yemen.

Although the Jordanian Ministry of Health targets to vaccinate about 60 percent of its population, the percentage of vaccinated individuals still has not reached 40 percent, according to official figures.

On Saturday, 12 COVID-19 deaths and 1,022 new infections were recorded in Jordan, bringing the kingdom's death toll to 11,028 and the number of infections to 860,818, the government reported. — Agencies