UPDATE: Health Officials Start Polio Vaccination Campaign In Gaza

Health officials announced a campaign to inoculate children in Gaza against polio has begun.

“Israel and Hamas have agreed to three separate three-day pauses in fighting in Gaza to allow for a polio vaccination campaign,” 100 Percent Fed Up previously noted.

Vaccination Campaign Sparks Temporary Pauses In Israel-Gaza Conflict

The vaccination campaign seeks to inoculate 640,000 children against polio.

"In a surprising turn, Hamas and Israel have found common ground: a vaccination campaign. Both sides have agreed to multiple three-day ceasefires in Gaza so health officials can vaccinate 640,000 children against polio. The campaign is already underway, with combat halted on both sides. It's amazing how Hamas and Israel can come together to vaccinate children," Shadow of Ezra wrote.

WATCH:

In a surprising turn, Hamas and Israel have found common ground: a vaccination campaign.

Both sides have agreed to multiple three-day ceasefires in Gaza so health officials can vaccinate 640,000 children against polio.

The campaign is already underway, with combat halted on… pic.twitter.com/psFSPSsCMU

— Shadow of Ezra (@ShadowofEzra) September 1, 2024

The Times of Israel reports:

Local health officials along with the United Nations and NGOs “are starting today the polio vaccination campaign in the central region,” Moussa Abed, director of primary health care at the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, told AFP.

The World Health Organization said on Thursday that Israel had agreed to a series of three-day “humanitarian pauses” in specific locations in Gaza to facilitate vaccinations, though officials said beforehand the campaign was expected to start on Sunday.

After beginning in central Gaza, vaccines are set to be administered in southern Gaza and then in northern Gaza.

The campaign, which involves two doses, aims to cover over 640,000 children under age 10.

Michael Ryan, WHO deputy director-general, told the UN Security Council this week that 1.26 million doses of the oral vaccine had been delivered in Gaza, with another 400,000 still to arrive.

"New footage from the massive vaccination effort in Gaza shows children receiving the vaccine orally. Disturbingly, this is a type of polio vaccine that the USA and other countries have rejected because it can actually cause severe problems, including polio," Shadow of Ezra noted.

WATCH:

New footage from the massive vaccination effort in Gaza shows children receiving the vaccine orally.

Disturbingly, this is a type of polio vaccine that the USA and other countries have rejected because it can actually cause severe problems, including polio.

As the crisis… pic.twitter.com/wUmQFMrXvZ

— Shadow of Ezra (@ShadowofEzra) September 1, 2024

From the Associated Press:

Meanwhile, Israel’s military late Saturday in a terse announcement said it had “located a number of bodies during combat” in Gaza. The army was trying to identify the bodies, including whether they were hostages, but said the process would take several hours. “We ask to refrain from spreading rumors,” it said. There were no further details.

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A small number of children in Gaza received vaccine doses a day before the large-scale rollout and limited pauses in the fighting agreed to by Israel and the U.N. World Health Organization. Associated Press journalists saw about 10 children receiving doses at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis.

“There must be a cease-fire so that the teams can reach everyone targeted by this campaign,” said Dr. Yousef Abu Al-Rish, Gaza’s deputy health minister, describing scenes of sewage running through crowded tent camps. Polio is spread through fecal matter.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in a statement said “Israel will allow a humanitarian corridor only” and “areas will be established that will be safe for administering the vaccines for a few hours.”

Israel said the vaccination program would continue through Sept. 9 and last eight hours a day. It will allow health workers to administer vaccines with the aim of reaching some 640,000 Palestinian children.

WATCH:

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at 100 Percent Fed Up.

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