Gaza [Palestine], September 4: The World Health Organisation (WHO) has vaccinated 161,000 Palestinian children in two days as part of the polio vaccination campaign in Gaza, surpassing the initial target of around 156,550.
Speaking at a press conference today (via video link from Gaza) to journalists in Geneva, Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO Representative in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, stated that preliminary data shows around 74,340 children were vaccinated on the second day of the campaign, while over 86,600 children were vaccinated on the first day.
Dr. Peeperkorn added that the majority of the remaining children in central Gaza are expected to be vaccinated by the end of the first round. He noted that multiple teams have been deployed at larger fixed sites, allowing some to operate as mobile teams to proactively reach children and ensure no child is missed.
The WHO official confirmed that vaccination teams encountered larger populations in Maghazi, Bureij, and Al-Masdar, where additional vaccine shipments were sent to primary healthcare centres in Maghazi and Bureij due to high demand.
Dr. Peeperkorn highlighted that WHO considers there to be a significant risk of type 2 poliovirus infection within Gaza and internationally, due to gaps in children's immunity caused by disruptions in routine immunisation, a high number of newborns, the destruction of the healthcare system, ongoing population displacement, malnutrition, and severely damaged water and sanitation systems.
Last Saturday, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan directed the allocation of US$5 million to support the emergency polio vaccination campaign in Gaza following the first recorded case of the virus in the area. The initiative is part of the UAE's ongoing efforts to provide relief to the Palestinian people, particularly children, in response to the challenging humanitarian conditions they face.
Source: Emirates News Agency
