CAIRO: On Thursday, large numbers of Palestinians flocked to medical facilities in the southern region of the beleaguered Gaza Strip to get their kids vaccinated against polio, marking the beginning of the second phase of a campaign that has already seen 187,000 children administered the vaccine.
The initiative, which has been made possible by Israel and Hamas agreeing to brief ceasefires, has been successful thus far but is complicated, according to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. However, there were still fighting areas of the enclave, with Gaza health officials stating that Israeli airstrikes had killed many people, including one that targeted a hospital in the center of Gaza.
Vaccinations started on Thursday in Gaza’s southern districts of Rafah and Khan Yunis, which have both been severely damaged by the fighting and have been home to tens of thousands of residents who have evacuated other areas.
The southern parts of Gaza are now being targeted by the polio vaccination program. UNRWA announced in a statement that “teams from UNRWA are in Khan Yunis this morning, working with partners to provide the vaccine to children.”
It stated, “Area pauses must be respected at this crucial time to protect families and humanitarian workers.”
The majority of the activities will take place in Khan Yunis and include locals who were compelled to evacuate Rafah, which is close to the Egyptian border and has been under Israeli military occupation since May.
Health officials initiated a drive to vaccinate 640,000 children in Gaza against polio after learning of a case in which a one-year-old infant suffered partial paralysis.
In 25 years, there hasn’t been a confirmed incidence of the illness in Gaza, one of the most populous areas on Earth. It surfaced again when the fighting has rendered several hospitals inoperable and caused Gaza’s health system to all but collapse.
Large groups of Palestinians were seen arriving to medical facilities in Khan Yunis to have their children vaccinated, according to footage released by the Gaza Health Ministry.
As he escorted his nephew into the hospital, Gaza resident Osama Brika declared, “My message to the world is that just as you provided us with vaccination so that our children would be safe, you must provide us with a ceasefire and a stop to this conflict, as this conflict is a real catastrophe for us.”
Ikram Nasser, a Palestinian refugee who was waiting in line with her son at a vaccination station, claimed that the polio threat had only made people’s anxieties worse. Our way of life is centered around fear—fear of bombs, terror, damage, and injury. We also add to that the concern about diseases that have spread due to poor hygiene and overcrowding, like skin conditions,” the speaker stated.
UNRWA stated on Wednesday that while the vaccination program for children in Gaza is making significant progress, a long-term truce in the conflict, which has lasted for 11 months, is required to alleviate the suffering of the humanitarian community.
