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Rabat – The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) has announced that approximately 187,000 children in central Gaza have been vaccinated against polio as part of a large-scale campaign aimed at preventing the re-emergence of the virus in the war-torn territory.
The vaccination drive, which began three days ago, is being carried out in cooperation with local medical teams and the World Health Organization (WHO).
UNRWA shared the update on X, stating, “After 3 days of polio vaccination campaign in Gaza middle areas, UNRWA teams and partners reached around 187,000 children. Efforts continue to provide as many children as possible with the vaccine. Temporary area pauses must be respected. Above all, we need a #CeasefireNow.”
Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said that the campaign has now entered its fourth day. The next phase of the campaign is scheduled to begin tomorrow in Khan Younis, lasting four days before moving to northern Gaza, a marginalized area of the enclave.
However, the vaccination efforts are being conducted under challenging circumstances, as Israeli bombardments continue to impact northern, central, and southern Gaza, he noted.
The urgency of the vaccination drive follows the first reported case of polio in Gaza in 25 years, when a baby was diagnosed with the disease last month. This development has raised alarm over the re-emergence of the virus, which had been eradicated in the region for decades.
The WHO has not yet determined how the polio virus resurfaced in Gaza, but it has noted similarities with a variant found in neighboring Egypt. The outbreak is likely linked to declining vaccination coverage in Gaza, which has dropped from 99% in 2022 to 89% in 2023, alongside worsening sanitation and living conditions in the enclave.
As the campaign continues, both UNRWA and WHO stress the importance of reaching as many children as possible, calling for temporary pauses in hostilities to allow for the safe administration of vaccines. Conditions for aid workers remain harrowing, however, as Israel continues its ongoing genocide in other parts of Gaza.
