Key Takeaways
- The UN plans to launch a two-phase vaccination campaign in Gaza to immunize over 640,000 children.
- The Palestinian Ministry of Health is working with international health partners to coordinate the vaccination effort.
- The Israeli aggression against Gaza has hindered the work of health personnel, making it challenging to launch the vaccination campaign.
Gaza: Gaza-based health authorities announced on Sunday that 1.26 million doses of polio vaccines have arrived in the coastal enclave, home to over 2 million people.
Health authorities in Gaza announced that preparations were underway to launch the vaccination campaign in coordination with international partners.
The campaign targeted 640,000 children in Gaza, with each child from birth to 10 years old receiving two doses of the vaccine, according to a statement from Ramallah-based Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The ministry is working around the clock to coordinate with international health partners to launch the campaign in the coming days, while ensuring the safety of health workers amid ongoing “Israeli aggression” against the Strip, read the statement.
The statement called on the international community and organizations to increase pressure on Israel to halt the “aggression” and to facilitate the work of health personnel in Gaza.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced in mid-August that the UN plans to launch a two-phase vaccination campaign at the end of the month to immunize more than 640,000 children in Gaza.
Hamas has agreed to the UN’s call for a truce to enable the vaccination effort.
Polio is a highly infectious viral disease that primarily affects children under five.
According to the World Health Organization, it spreads person-to-person, mainly through the fecal-oral route or, less commonly, through contaminated water or food.
