DEIR EL-BALAH (AFP) – A second round of a campaign to vaccinate hundreds of thousands of children in Gaza against polio began yesterday as Israeli forces continued deadly operations in parts of the Palestinian territory.
Polio has re-emerged in besieged Gaza for the first time in 25 years as a result of the war which has left most medical facilities and the sewage system in ruins.
“Today is the first day of the (second round of the polio) campaign and there is a good turnout because people are convinced by the vaccination,” Abu Saleel, an employee of the Gaza health ministry, told AFP at a medical centre in the central city of Deir el-Balah. Behind him health workers administered the vaccine to dozens of children who had come with their families, an AFP correspondent reported.
The United Nations agencies for health and for children said they were aiming to provide follow-up doses to some 591,700 children under the age of 10 across Gaza in this round of vaccination.
This follows a first round of vaccination implemented from September 1 to 12, which was hailed as a success by aid agencies.
The latest drive comes amid an escalation of Israeli military operations in central and northern areas of Gaza in recent days, which have already killed and wounded hundreds, according to the Gaza civil defence agency.
