2nd round of polio vaccinations in Gaza set to start on Oct. 14: UNICEF

HAMILTON, Canada (AA) – Around 590,000 children in Gaza will receive polio vaccinations in the second phase which begins October 14, the UNICEF has announced.

“The second round of polio vaccination in the Gaza Strip is confirmed. It will start on 14th October to vaccinate around 590K children under 10,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said on X.

Saying that “area-specific humanitarian pauses have been agreed,” Russell urged all parties to respect these pauses.

“Without them, it is impossible to vaccinate the children,” she added.

She also announced that vitamin A supplements will be given to children in Gaza to strengthen their immune systems as “children in Gaza live in extremely dire hygiene and sanitation conditions” amid Israel’s offensive on the strip, which has continued for over a year.

“With the additional vaccine equipment and cold boxes, UNICEF is ready to deliver and vaccinate children to stop the transmission of polio,” she said, adding that successful first round of vaccination “shows that when agreements are respected, we can get the job done.”

On August 16, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported the first case of polio in the Gaza Strip.

In collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), Palestinian Health Ministry, UNICEF, and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), a polio vaccination campaign targeting more than 600,000 children under the age of 10 was launched in the Gaza Strip.

The first round was completed on September16, with a reported vaccination coverage rate of 90%.

Polio virus spreads through sewage. Israel’s war on Gaza over the past one year has destroyed sewage infrastructure in the Palestinian territory.