The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday requested a “humanitarian pause” in Gaza in order to carry out a mass vaccination campaign against polio.
In a joint statement with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), WHO said seven-day pauses in fighting between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas would “allow children and families to safely reach health facilities.”
The authorities are planning to vaccinate more than 640,000 children in the territory in two rounds in late August and September.
“Without the humanitarian pauses, the delivery of the campaign will not be possible,” the statement said.
The WHO said the campaign is urgently required after three children in Gaza developed symptoms of paralysis, a common sign of infection with polio.
Poliovirus, which is transmitted via faecal and oral contamination, has been detected in wastewater in recent weeks, although no cases have yet been confirmed.
In severe cases, polio can lead to paralysis and eventually death.
It has been largely eradicated in many parts of the globe.
dpa/NAN
