Several children in Gaza have received polio vaccines ahead of a large-scale campaign aimed at immunizing children against the virus, as well as a planned pause in fighting in the besieged region, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. Reporters from the Associated Press witnessed around 10 infants receiving vaccine doses at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Saturday afternoon. “I was scared and waiting for the vaccination to arrive, so that everyone could get it,” stated Amal Shaheen, whose daughter received a dose.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that the official rollout of the vaccine will begin on Sunday. The three-day vaccination campaign aims to reach approximately 640,000 Palestinian children and follows the first reported case of polio in Gaza in 25 years, which was detected earlier this month.
According to Al Jazeera reporter Hani Mahmoud, the rollout will start in central Gaza on Sunday. “In the following days, vaccinations will take place in Khan Younis, and the final rollout will occur in the northern part of the Strip,” Mahmoud added.
Israel has agreed to pauses in its military offensive in Gaza to allow healthcare workers to administer the vaccines, UN officials have stated. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative in the Palestinian territories, noted on Thursday that the three pauses would take place from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. over three days in different areas of Gaza, starting on Sunday. The pauses are not related to ongoing ceasefire negotiations.
“These are very short breaks from morning until noon in each area. Considering the travel logistics for people in Gaza, it will not be easy for them to safely go back and forth,” said Mukesh Kapila, a former WHO official, to Al Jazeera. He added that Palestinian parents would be worried about their children’s safety, as Israeli strikes on healthcare facilities continue.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has deepened amid Israeli attacks, which began following a Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on October 7, resulting in at least 1,139 deaths. Israel’s subsequent offensive has claimed at least 40,691 lives in Gaza.
On Saturday, the Palestinian Civil Defense Authority in Gaza reported that at least three people were killed and many others injured in an Israeli strike near al-Ahli Arab Hospital (often referred to as Baptist Hospital). Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud mentioned that in a previous attack on the hospital, hundreds were killed.
“This is not the first time we have seen health facilities being directly and deliberately targeted by the Israeli military. This particular hospital was attacked in the early weeks of this war, and hundreds of people were killed while in the hospital’s yard,” he said.
The United States, Qatar, and Egypt have spent months trying to mediate a ceasefire in Gaza, which would also lead to the release of remaining hostages. However, negotiations have repeatedly stalled, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised “total victory” over Hamas, while the Palestinian group has demanded a lasting ceasefire and a complete Israeli withdrawal from the area.