- Israel agrees to pauses in fighting for polio vaccine drive
- Aim to vaccinate 640,000 children across the Gaza Strip, starting on Sunday
- Vaccinations conducted in three stages across central, southern, and northern Gaza
- Each stage will involve a three-day pause in fighting, from 06:00 to 15:00 local time
Israel agrees to pauses in fighting for polio vaccine drive
Israel has agreed to a series of “humanitarian pauses” in Gaza to facilitate a mass vaccination campaign against polio, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The campaign aims to vaccinate approximately 640,000 children across the Gaza Strip, starting on Sunday, said senior WHO official Rik Peeperkorn.
The vaccination effort will be conducted in three stages across central, southern, and northern Gaza. Each stage will involve a three-day pause in fighting, from 06:00 to 15:00 local time, to ensure the safety of the vaccination teams and the public.
To combat the outbreak, around 1.26 million doses of the novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) are already available in Gaza, with an additional 400,000 doses expected to arrive soon.
The vaccinations will be administered by UN staff and local health workers, with over 2,000 personnel trained for the campaign. The WHO aims to achieve 90% vaccine coverage to stop the spread of the virus in Gaza. If necessary, a fourth day of vaccination and humanitarian pause has been planned to reach this target.
Poliovirus is highly contagious and primarily spreads through contaminated water and sewage, making vaccination crucial to preventing further cases.