Palestinian health authorities and UN agencies began distributing polio vaccines to children in the Gaza Strip over the weekend, the Gaza Ministry of Health announced. It was announced on Saturday.
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced last week that the polio vaccination campaign aims to vaccinate an estimated 640,000 children in the Gaza Strip. The health agency said two drops of the vaccine will be given per child in two separate doses, with the second dose given four weeks after the first.
The effort began in central Gaza with a “humanitarian pause” starting at 6 a.m. on Sunday and will run until 3 p.m. over three days, according to the WHO. The effort will also be carried out in the south and north of the Gaza Strip in coordination with Israeli authorities.
The campaign was launched weeks after Palestinian health officials announced the first case of polio in Gaza in an unvaccinated 10-month-old baby in the city of Deir al-Balah, the first in years for the Strip, which has been facing a humanitarian crisis for months due to the war between Israel and Hamas.
Polio is commonly spread through contaminated water and can cause paralysis and death.
According to the WHO, to stop the spread of the virus in Gaza, health workers need to vaccinate at least 90 percent of children there. More than 2,100 health workers will help with the effort.
The news came shortly after Israeli forces said they had found the bodies of six hostages in the Gaza Strip, including Israeli-American captive Hersh Goldberg Pollin, whose parents famously campaigned publicly for his release during the months-long war.
Israel Defense ForcesI said on SundayThe six hostages were killed in an underground tunnel in Rafah shortly before Hamas forces arrived.
The recovery of the six bodies comes as negotiations drag on between Israel, Hamas and international mediators, further fuelling calls for a ceasefire and hostage release deal to end the 10-month war.
The war has been ongoing for more than 10 months since Hamas launched a surprise attack in southern Gaza that left 1,200 people dead. An estimated 250 people were taken hostage, about 100 of whom were released during a week-long pause in fighting late last year.
More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of October in retaliatory operations by Israeli forces to eliminate the threat posed by extremist groups, local health officials said.
