Aug. 31 (UPI) — The Gaza Health Ministry has launched a polio vaccination campaign, aiming to immunize over 90% of children under the age of 10 across the war-torn Palestinian territory.
The campaign commenced on Saturday in Khan Younis and is scheduled to run until September 12, covering all children in Gaza. The initiative is supported by the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), with vaccinations beginning at Nasser Hospital following a joint press conference announcing the effort.
The vaccination drive will roll out in stages: targeting children in central Gaza from September 1-4, in Khan Younis from September 5-9, and in Gaza City and northern Gaza from September 9-12.
The ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel, which began with Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, has exacerbated shortages of essential supplies such as food, medicine, and clean water, heightening the risk of disease outbreaks, including polio.
On August 16, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a seven-day ceasefire to facilitate the polio vaccination campaign. UNRWA aims to vaccinate over 640,000 children in Gaza after Israel agreed to halt military operations in areas where vaccinations are taking place.
The urgency of the campaign became clear when a 10-month-old child tested positive for polio in July, marking the first confirmed case in Gaza in 25 years. Further testing in June also detected polio in sewage samples from the area.
Before the conflict, Gaza had achieved nearly complete polio vaccination coverage. However, the war has caused vaccination rates to drop below 90%, putting children, especially those under age three, at increased risk. Polio is a highly contagious disease that can cause paralysis and death, with no cure available, making vaccination the only means of prevention.
Despite the agreement to pause the conflict in vaccination zones, several aid organizations have reported that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) struck their convoys. A charity reported that an airstrike on one of its vehicles resulted in the deaths of several transportation company workers. IDF officials claimed that the strike targeted armed militants who had seized control of the vehicle.
The Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry reported over 40,600 Gazan deaths since October 7 but did not differentiate between militants and civilians in its figures.
