For the polio vaccine campaign to be successful, a humanitarian pause in the war is needed so that polio vaccine doses can reach health services, the United Nations health agency said on Wednesday, a day before World Polio Day on October 24. Families can safely reach vaccination sites and mobile teams of health workers can reach children in the community
But due to increasing levels of violence, Israel’s burden of deadly diseases, large-scale displacement of people, and the lack of guarantees of a definitive humanitarian pause in the bombardment of northern Gaza, the Gaza Polio Technical Committee has been forced to implement a third and final phase of the vaccine campaign. The episode was supposed to start from Wednesday.
In the final phase of the vaccination campaign, the aim is to provide polio vaccine doses to 1,19,279 children across northern Gaza.
The Gaza Polio Technical Committee includes the Palestinian Ministry of Health, WHO, UNICEF, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), and other partners.
Blockade and Bombardment
Currently, an estimated four million people are trapped in northern Gaza, facing evacuation orders and heavy bombardment by Israeli forces.
On Tuesday, UNRWA, WHO and other UN agencies called on the Israeli authorities to immediately allow the delivery of life-saving humanitarian aid to the population.
The current situation in northern Gaza poses a threat to the security and movement of people, including continued Israeli attacks on civilian infrastructure, the UN health agency said. Because of these attacks, it is impossible for families to bring their children to health centers to receive polio vaccine doses.
campaign ready
The WHO says it is critical to stop the spread of polio as soon as possible before more children become disabled and the disease spreads to other areas.
The WHO and UNICEF called for an immediate ceasefire, calling on all parties to ensure the safety of civilians, health workers and civilian infrastructure such as schools, shelters and hospitals.
Polio is back in Gaza
Polio was completely eradicated in Gaza about 25 years ago, but the first cases of polio were recorded there a few months ago this year, said to be the result of the nearly year-long war and Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip has limited the delivery of humanitarian aid, severely damaged water and sanitation services, and resulted in large numbers of people fleeing Israel’s evacuation orders, creating temporary shelters.
Delays threaten the entire region
The UN health agency has stressed that the campaign to stop polio could be seriously affected if large numbers of children miss the second dose of polio vaccine. In such a situation, polio may spread to other areas of the Gaza Strip and neighboring countries.
Since the second phase of the polio vaccination campaign began on October 14, 442,855 children under the age of 10 have been dosed in central and southern Gaza. This figure is 94 percent of the total target.
In this campaign, 3 lakh 57 thousand 802 children aged two to 10 years have been given vitamin ‘A’ supplements.