Abdullah Abu Daif (Rafah)
The Palestinian Ministry of Health has completed preparations to launch a polio vaccination campaign in Gaza today, after the disease appeared for the first time in 25 years in the Strip, amid international praise for the UAE’s support for the vaccination campaign and the World Health Organization’s efforts to combat epidemics worldwide.
Earlier, the United Nations confirmed that the military parties in the sector had agreed to a 3-day truce at specific points for vaccination against the disease.
Relief organizations praised the decision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, may God protect him, to provide $5 million to support the emergency vaccination campaign against polio in Gaza, as part of the ongoing efforts made by the UAE to provide relief to the brotherly Palestinian people, especially children, in response to the difficult humanitarian conditions they are going through.
Adnan Abu Hasna, spokesman for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza, expressed UNRWA’s gratitude to the UAE for its generous donation, which contributed to facilitating the international campaign to provide relief and vaccination to the children of Gaza.
He added in statements to Al-Ittihad that this support comes at a critical time, and contributes significantly to advancing the vaccination process, which contributes to protecting thousands of children under the age of ten, warning that the absence of vaccination could lead to a dangerous deterioration of the health situation in Gaza during the coming period in light of the ongoing military escalation.
The campaign, which is being implemented in cooperation with the World Health Organization, UNICEF and UNRWA, provides two doses of polio vaccine to more than 640,000 children to stop the spread of the virus and prevent the outbreak of the disease in the Strip. It starts today and will be implemented gradually in central Gaza, then move to southern and northern Gaza.
Each phase lasts for 3 days during the humanitarian pauses for each area, allowing families and children to access health facilities, and medical teams to reach children.
About 1.26 million doses of polio vaccine have arrived in Gaza in preparation for the launch of the campaign, and another 400,000 doses are scheduled to arrive in the coming days.
Abu Hasna said that the polio vaccination campaign targets hundreds of thousands of children in the Gaza Strip to protect them, stressing that the current health situation in Gaza poses a serious threat to the lives of children.
He pointed out that the vaccines have arrived in Gaza, where UNRWA is responsible for implementing this vital campaign, while it is being coordinated and sponsored by UNICEF and the World Health Organization, adding that more than a thousand health workers have undergone intensive training, contributing to the vaccination operations that will take place in shelters and other specific locations.
In a related context, Ezz El-Din, the uncle of the child Abdul Rahman, the first polio patient in Gaza, expressed his deep gratitude to the UAE for its continuous support for the Palestinian cause, adding, “We thank the UAE for this uninterrupted support.”
In statements to Al-Ittihad, Fadhila Al-Shaib, the international spokesperson for the World Health Organization, called for the necessity of providing an opportunity to vaccinate Gaza’s children against polio, and stopping the targeting of health facilities to prevent the spread of diseases among civilians, amid the ongoing military escalation.
She added that polio had been eradicated more than 25 years ago in the Gaza Strip, and its return reflects the extent of children’s suffering in the Strip after the collapse of the health system and their failure to receive the necessary protection from the spread of chronic and incurable diseases.
For his part, Kazem Abu Khalaf, UNICEF spokesperson in Gaza, expressed his deep thanks to the UAE for its continuous and necessary support.
“The UAE has always been at the forefront of supporters of Palestine and the people of Gaza, and its generous support reflects its deep commitment to its Palestinian brothers,” Abu Khalaf told Al-Ittihad. Abu Khalaf added that since last June, seven samples of sewage water have been taken in two different areas in Gaza, and tests showed that six of these samples tested positive for poliovirus type 2, a dangerous and contagious virus that poses serious health risks.
Abu Khalaf stressed that humanitarian institutions in Gaza worked intensively to launch an urgent vaccination campaign, and continued by saying: “UNICEF brought into Gaza a few weeks ago the equipment needed to maintain specific temperatures for vaccinations, and last week, one million, three hundred and twenty thousand doses of vaccination were brought in.”
He explained that the campaign will include two rounds of vaccination, each targeting 640,000 children under the age of ten. The first round will begin today, while the second round will be held after a month. He pointed out that the campaign requires coverage of up to 90% of children to ensure success.
Abu Khalaf pointed out that the campaign will be implemented in stages, as the first round will target children in Deir al-Balah, followed by Khan Yunis and Rafah, then Gaza and the northern Gaza Strip.
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