UN relief agencies have begun preparations for a polio vaccination campaign in the Gaza Strip, citing the high risk of the disease spreading amidst the ongoing conflict.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) are working with the Gaza Ministry of Health to administer two rounds of oral polio vaccine to more than 640,000 children under 10 years of age in the coming weeks.
Stephane Dujarric, chief spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told reporters on Friday that UN humanitarians have moved refrigerated trucks into Gaza to maintain the cold chain necessary for the vaccine. Medical staff are in place to administer the doses, though the vaccine itself has not yet arrived.
The UN aims for a humanitarian pause in the conflict to ensure the safety of staff and children during the vaccination campaign, which is scheduled to take place later this month and in early September.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini warned that delaying a humanitarian pause will increase the risk of polio spreading among children.
“It is not enough to bring the vaccines into Gaza and protect the cold chain – the vaccines must also end up in the mouths of every child under the age of 10,” Lazzarini said. UNRWA medical teams will deliver the vaccines in the agency’s clinics and through its mobile health teams.
OCHA reported that the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed a case of polio in Gaza, the first in 25 years. The Gaza Health Ministry confirmed the case of a 10-month-old baby in Deir al Balah.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the child is in stable condition but has developed paralysis in the lower left leg.
The agency warns that disrupted water and sanitation systems in Gaza, including at hospitals, are increasing the risk of infectious diseases. “WHO has procured more than $400,000 of infection prevention and control supplies, including chlorine tablets, hygiene products, and gloves,” OCHA said. “These items have already been delivered to five hospitals, with plans to reach two others in the coming weeks.”
However, repeated Israeli evacuation orders are severely disrupting aid operations in Gaza, humanitarians said.
OCHA said that three evacuation orders were issued on Wednesday and Thursday, affecting 15 neighbourhoods in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis. Initial mapping showed the areas included nearly 150 displacement locations, mostly informal sites. The latest evacuation directives bring the total number of orders issued in August to 13.
Humanitarian partners fighting hunger have reported that the amount of food assistance that entered southern Gaza in July was one of the lowest recorded in the past 10 months. They warn that active hostilities, damaged roads, access constraints, and a lack of public order and safety have led to critical food shortages.
“Children are paying the heaviest price – with poor diet and the decimation of healthcare services and water, sanitation and hygiene infrastructure raising the risk of malnutrition and disease,” OCHA said. “An assessment by UNICEF in July found that just 1% of children in northern Gaza — and only 6% in the south — received the recommended dietary diversity.”
The office said humanitarian partners working to provide nutrition reported that the number of children in northern Gaza who were diagnosed with acute malnutrition soared by over 300% last month compared to May — and by more than 150% in the south. Without unfettered humanitarian access that allows a significant scale-up of support, hunger and malnutrition will only worsen.
The World Food Programme (WFP) reported that as of a week ago, the agency reached 370,000 people with partial food parcels and wheat flour this month. However, distributions in Rafah are rare due to the ongoing conflict. WFP distributed more than 4.4 million hot meals across Gaza this month through 60 community kitchens, reaching an estimated 78,000 people, the vast majority in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah.
OCHA said the percentage of humanitarian movements denied by Israeli authorities last month more than doubled from 7% to 15%, severely hampering efforts to reach people with critical support quickly.
The office said that as of Thursday, only 43% of nearly 150 planned humanitarian assistance missions to northern Gaza were facilitated by Israeli authorities this month. The Israelis denied, impeded or cancelled the remainder due to security, operational or logistical reasons. In southern Gaza, less than half of almost 280 coordinated aid movements were facilitated by the Israeli authorities this month.
In the West Bank, OCHA said the WFP warned that escalating violence there could push the number of people facing food insecurity up to 600,000. WFP expanded its food voucher program fivefold in the West Bank and is prepared to reach as many as 200,000 people with cash-based transfers by the end of the month.
