Aid Groups Launch Mass Vaccination to Prevent Polio Outbreak in Gaza

In the Gaza Strip, the threat of polio is escalating rapidly, leading aid organizations to call for an immediate ceasefire to facilitate a mass vaccination effort. There has already been one confirmed case of the disease, with additional suspected cases and the virus detected in sewage in six areas during July.

Polio was eradicated in Gaza 25 years ago, but vaccination rates have plummeted since the onset of conflict ten months ago, leaving the area vulnerable to the virus. Aid groups report that hundreds of thousands of displaced individuals are living in overcrowded tent camps that lack access to clean water and proper sanitation facilities.

Aiming to prevent a widespread outbreak, organizations are preparing to immunize over 600,000 children within upcoming weeks. However, they stress that these vaccination efforts are unfeasible without a pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas.

Francis Hughes, Gaza response director at CARE International, expressed concern, stating, “We are anticipating and preparing for the worst-case scenario of a polio outbreak in the coming weeks or month.”

In a joint statement, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF indicated that at least a seven-day truce is essential for the mass vaccination initiative to succeed.

The U.N. plans to send 1.6 million doses of the polio vaccine to Gaza, where the destruction of sanitation and water infrastructures has resulted in open pits of human waste in densely populated tent camps. Many families in these camps face severe shortages of clean water and hygiene supplies, sometimes resorting to using wastewater for drinking and cleaning purposes.

According to a report by PAX, a Netherlands-based nonprofit, at least 225 makeshift waste disposal sites and landfills have emerged in Gaza, often located near shelters for displaced families.

Polio is an extremely contagious disease that mainly spreads through contact with contaminated water, food, or feces, leading to severe health issues such as paralysis and respiratory difficulties, especially among young children. It can even be fatal in some cases.

The aid organization Mercy Corps estimates that around 50,000 infants born since the conflict began are unvaccinated against polio. The latest reports from WHO and UNICEF confirm the presence of three suspected cases, with stool samples currently being analyzed in Jordan. The Ministry of Health in Ramallah reported that one case has been confirmed in a 10-month-old child in Gaza.

UNICEF spokesperson Ammar Ammar voiced urgency in the situation, stating, “It is impossible to carry out the vaccination in an active war zone, and the alternative would be unconscionable for the children in Gaza and the whole region.”

Concerns are growing about the potential rise in suspected cases, with aid workers acknowledging that without immediate intervention, the virus could be challenging to contain. Hughes from CARE International noted, “We are not optimistic because we know that doctors could also be missing the warning signs.”

Health workers in Gaza are organizing a massive vaccination campaign aimed at immunizing 640,000 children under the age of ten, set to begin at the end of August and continue into September, as stated by WHO.

The Israeli military unit responsible for civilian affairs, known as COGAT, announced plans to support a comprehensive vaccination initiative, stating that a vaccination campaign for ground troops is already underway and coordination is ongoing with various agencies to increase vaccine availability in Gaza.

Hamas has indicated its willingness to support a seven-day ceasefire to allow for vaccinations, with ceasefire negotiations set to continue in Cairo next week.

The alarm over the polio situation was initially raised in July when the WHO reported that sewage samples collected from various locations in Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah tested positive for a vaccine-derived polio variant. In areas with insufficient immunization, the weakened virus can mutate and lead to outbreaks, as indicated by the WHO.

Currently, Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only countries where polio remains endemic. However, instances of vaccine-derived virus outbreaks have also been reported in war-torn regions like Ukraine and Yemen, where conditions are not as dire as in Gaza.

A significant challenge in Gaza is raising awareness among health workers so they can identify symptoms of the disease, as the region’s healthcare system has been severely weakened by ongoing conflict. Medical professionals are overwhelmed with treating injured individuals and managing other health crises arising from the war.

Previously, 99% of Gaza’s population was vaccinated against polio, but that number has fallen to 86%. The goal is to restore immunization levels to above 95%.

Despite having received over 440,000 vaccine doses in December, the remaining supply now stands at just over 86,000, according to Hamid Jafari, director of polio eradication for the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region. The new shipment of 1.6 million oral doses being brought into Gaza will feature an advanced vaccine formulation less likely to mutate into a dangerous variant.

However, transporting the vaccine into Gaza is merely one hurdle. U.N. workers face numerous challenges retrieving medical supplies amid ongoing military assaults and conflicts, which have also led to an uptick in lawlessness resulting in looting.

Moreover, the vaccines require refrigeration, a major challenge in Gaza, where electricity is frequently unavailable. Currently, only 15-20 refrigerated trucks are operational, also tasked with delivering food and other medical supplies.

Additionally, Palestinians are facing significant challenges in accessing health facilities due to destroyed transport networks and unsafe conditions. Sameer Sah from Medical Aid for Palestinians highlighted the transportation crisis, noting, “There’s no transport system. The roads have been destroyed and you have quadcopters shooting at people,” referring to Israeli drones targeting areas in conflict.

The WHO emphasized that a pause in hostilities is crucial for enabling families to reach healthcare facilities safely, as well as allowing outreach workers access to children in need of vaccinations.

Currently, about one-third of Gaza’s 36 hospitals and 40% of its primary healthcare facilities are operational. Nonetheless, WHO and UNICEF affirmed their commitment to conducting a vaccination campaign across all municipalities in Gaza, supported by 2,700 healthcare workers.