HomeInternational NewsWHO Launches Polio Campaign in Gaza Amid Ongoing Conflict

WHO Launches Polio Campaign in Gaza Amid Ongoing Conflict

The World Health Organization (WHO) is launching a campaign against polio in Gaza after the virus was detected in the area. However, the ongoing conflict poses significant challenges to the effort. So far, there have been no clinically diagnosed cases, but traces of polio were found in sewage in the Deir el-Balah and Khan Younis regions of Gaza, according to WHO’s polio specialist Hamid Jafari at a press conference on Wednesday.

“We need a ceasefire, even a temporary ceasefire, to effectively carry out these campaigns. Otherwise, we risk further spreading the virus, including across borders,” said Hanan Balkhy, WHO Regional Director.

On July 30, the Ministry of Health in Gaza declared the Palestinian territory a “polio epidemic zone,” attributing the resurgence of the virus to Israel’s ten-month military offensive and the resulting destruction of health facilities. The ministry reported that the CPV2 strain of the virus was detected in sewage samples from the Khan Younis region in southern Gaza, as well as in central Gaza areas.

Children under five years of age are particularly at risk for the viral disease, especially infants under two, as normal vaccination campaigns have been disrupted by the conflict. On the same day, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that over one million polio vaccines will be sent to Gaza, according to AFP.

“Health workers need freedom of movement in Gaza to administer the vaccines. A ceasefire, or at least a few days of calm, is essential to protect the children of Gaza,” he stated. WHO is sending more than one million polio vaccines, which will be administered in the coming weeks.

Human rights advocates have emphasized the need to end the violence in order to address the health crisis in Gaza. Balkhy also highlighted the risk of developing antimicrobial resistance within Gaza and the possibility that such strains could spread to other countries.

Poliomyelitis, primarily transmitted via the fecal-oral route, is a highly contagious virus that can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis. Since 1988, the number of polio cases has decreased by 99 percent globally, thanks to mass vaccination efforts, and the pursuit of eradicating the virus continues.

Israel has limited access for humanitarian groups to Gaza, and Israeli forces have targeted aid convoys, leading to the deaths of dozens of aid workers. Moreover, the Israeli offensive has rendered most of Gaza’s hospitals non-operational. The recurring displacement of Palestinians, who continue to receive evacuation orders from the Israeli military, complicates efforts to locate and reach unvaccinated children.

There are increasing concerns regarding the spread of diseases in Gaza due to the humanitarian crisis, lack of medical supplies, and the destruction of water purification facilities by Israel. Gaza has recorded 24 times the normal rate of diarrhea cases, more than 100,000 cases of scabies and lice, and 70,000 cases of skin rashes due to overcrowding, overflowing sewage, and contaminated water, reported Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territory.

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