UN commends Gaza polio progress, calls for permanent ceasefire agreement

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, a UN agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees, has commended the incredible feat being made in rolling out a polio vaccine to children in Gaza.

UNRWA disclosed that three days into the campaign in areas of central Gaza, around 187,000 children had received the vaccine. The campaign will move to other areas of the Palestinian enclave for the second stage.

The vaccination campaign came after the discovery of a case of polio in a baby boy last month, the first in the Gaza Strip for 25 years.

Israel and Hamas fighters agreed to daily pauses of eight hours in the fighting in pre-specified areas to allow the vaccination program. No violations have been reported.

“Great progress! Every day in the Middle Areas of #Gaza, more children are getting vaccines against #Polio,” the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, said on X on Wednesday.

“While these polio ‘pauses’ are giving people some respite, what is urgently needed is a permanent ceasefire, the release of all hostages + the standard flow of humanitarian supplies including medical and hygiene supplies (into Gaza),” he said.

The resurgence of polio in Gaza has been attributed by Palestinians to the devastating impact of the war on the territory’s healthcare system, including the destruction of most hospitals. Israel, however, claims that Hamas has exploited hospitals for military purposes, a charge the group vehemently denies.

Despite these challenges, COGAT, the Israeli defense ministry agency responsible for coordinating aid deliveries, reported on Tuesday that it has facilitated the entry of 282,126 doses of polio vaccine into Gaza since the start of the conflict, sufficient for 2,821,260 people.

Additionally, approximately 554,512 vaccine doses have been delivered to the territory, protecting against various diseases and potential epidemics for nearly 4.97 million individuals.

This is a significant effort, given Gaza’s population of around 2.3 million, making it one of the most densely populated places globally.