Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennett has confirmed that the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) has developed an antibody or passive vaccine which can attack and neutralise the virus responsible for COVID-19 within the bodies of those infected.

Last month, IIBR started testing its antibody-based vaccine prototype on rodents. Terming the development a ‘major breakthrough’, the minister said that the ‘antibody that attacks the virus in a monoclonal way and can neutralise it within the bodies of those ill’. Meanwhile, Israel is planning to set up the country’s first vaccine production facility in the small southern town of Yeruham.

According to a report in The Jerusalem Post, a spokesperson for the Yeruham local council revealed the plan, which is in partnership with the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) and an international pharmaceutical company.

The report stated that a model that would enable for the establishment of the facility was presented. As per the model, the facility in Yeruham will manufacture tens of millions of vaccine units, of various types, which will help ensure the country self-sufficiency even in times of pandemics. The plan, if approved by the Israeli government, will allow the facility to be built even before the IIBR completes the full development and approval for its vaccine, the report said.