The WHO will resume mass polio vaccinations in Gaza on 22 February, aiming to immunise over 591,000 children under 10 after the virus was detected in wastewater. The campaign, delayed since November due to conflict, comes amid worsening humanitarian conditions and rising health risks.
In a statement released by the Director-General of the organization,Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on his X (formerly Twitter) handle, he said that the important vaccines will be provided to over 591,000 children under the age of 10 living in the strip.
He further explained that “This campaign follows the recent detection of poliovirus in wastewater samples, signaling circulation in the environment, which is putting children at risk”.
The five day campaign which was previously suspended in November 2024 was postponed due to “intense bombardments, mass displacements, lack of assured humanitarian pauses and access” according to the WHO.
WHO has also said that current conditions in the strip including overcrowding in shelters, and severely damaged water, sanitation and hygiene infrastructure, which facilitates fecal-oral transmission, create ideal conditions for further spread of the virus..
Thousands of displaced Palestinians have continued to make the return trip home since the first phase of the ceasefire deal was finalized with Israel on January 19.
In a bid to help rebuilding and humanitarian efforts across the region, Egypt and Qatar have also dispatched construction equipment to the strip to establish a container city and clear debris from buildings destroyed by the Israeli attacks.
Quick look at the polio virus
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India will dispatch the second shipment of Akash surface-to-air missile systems to Armenia in July, marking continued defense cooperation between the two countries.
Iran is holding indirect negotiations with the United States to reaffirm its right to peaceful nuclear energy, President Masoud Pezeshkian said, adding that Tehran will not yield to pressure or give up its nuclear ambitions for civilian use.
President Donald Trump is set to begin his Middle East tour, visiting Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE. The trip aims to boost trade and investment, with a focus on energy, defense, and technology deals, including a $1 trillion commitment from Saudi Arabia.
A fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan, reached on Saturday after the deadliest fighting in decades, largely held on Sunday—even as both countries traded blame and offered conflicting versions of how the truce was brokered.
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