UNRWA Chief Says Polio Vaccination Coverage In Gaza Strip Has Reached 90 Percent

Polio Vaccination in the Gaza Strip. (Twitter/@WHOEMRO)

JAKARTA - The polio vaccination coverage in Gaza has reached 90 percent, the head of the United Nations' Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) said on Monday, adding the next step was to ensure hundreds of thousands of children get a second dose by the end of the month.

The campaign to vaccinate about 640,000 children in Gaza under the age of 10 against polio, which began on September 1, presents a major challenge to UNRWA and its partners due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

This follows confirmation by the World Health Organization (WHO) last month that a baby has been partially paralyzed by the type 2 polio virus, the first case in the Palestinian region in 25 years.

More than 446,000 Palestinian children in central and southern Gaza were vaccinated earlier this month before the campaign to vaccinate the last 200,000 children in northern Gaza began on September 10 despite restrictions on access, evacuation orders, and fuel shortages.

The first round of the polio vaccination campaign in Gaza ended successfully, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said, adding that about 90 percent of children in the enclave had received the first dose.

"Conflict parties have mostly respected the necessary "humanitarian grid" that suggests when there is political will, aid can be provided without interruption. Our next challenge is to give children a second dose by the end of September," Lazzarini wrote on X., reported by Reuters on September 17.

The latest conflict in Gaza broke out on October 7, 2023, after a Palestinian militant group led by Hamas launched an attack on Israel's southern region, killing about 1,200 people and holding about 250 people hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

It was replied by a blockade, airstrikes and ground operations by the Israeli military in the Palestinian enclave.

Gaza health authorities confirmed on Sunday that the death toll from Palestine since the latest conflict broke out had reached 41,226 and 95,413 others were injured, the majority of the victims were women and children.