From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, November 6, 2024
IDF says Gaza polio vaccination campaign has been completed
Jeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter
Israel says that the Polio vaccination campaign in Gaza conducted in recent weeks has been completed, with some 1.1 million vaccines administered and a vaccination rate among children of over 90 percent.
According to the Coordinator of Government Affairs in the Territories (COGAT), a Defense Ministry agency that coordinates the provision of humanitarian aid into Gaza, 211,170 children were vaccinated in northern Gaza; 379,361 children were vaccinated in central Gaza; and 517,070 were vaccinated in southern Gaza.
COGAT says the campaign was carried out in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, and that the Israeli agency facilitated tactical humanitarian pauses in the fighting in Gaza in order to facilitate the distribution of the vaccines.
The vaccination drive that has just been completed is the second in three months, after an initial campaign was undertaken and completed in September.
That drive came after an unvaccinated 10-month-old baby from central Gaza contracted polio and suffered partial paralysis in September, the first case of the disease in the enclave in 25 years.
To ensure the success of the campaign, COGAT says it and the aid organizations involved facilitated the entry of polio specialists to Gaza, as well as the delivery of medical and logistical equipment, refrigeration equipment to store and transport the vaccines, and essential vitamins.
“The State of Israel, through COGAT, will continue to act in accordance with international law, addressing the medical situation of civilians in Gaza,” COGAT says.
