GAZA’S Health Ministry has declared a polio epidemic in the war-torn territory, blaming relentless Israeli attacks for worsening the health emergency in Gaza.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced it will send 1 million polio vaccines to Gaza, after the highly contagious disease was recently detected in wastewater and sewage samples.
A WHO spokesperson told Al Jazeera the ceasefire was needed to ensure vaccines reached children as Gaza’s Health Ministry said urgent intervention was needed to prevent the spread of a polio epidemic.
“This is just the beginning of the wave of disease that the Gaza Strip will face,” said Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir-el Balah.
“Palestinians have been living in makeshift tents with no bathrooms, no hygiene, no access to water and sanitation. There is waste everywhere,” he added.
Dr Tanya Haj-Hassan, a paediatric intensive care specialist, told Al Jazeera in an interview earlier this month that the presence of poliovirus in sewage was a “time bomb”.
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“Typically, if you have a case of polio, you would isolate the patient, make sure they use a toilet that is not used by other people, make sure they are not in close proximity to other people, [tetapi] “That’s not possible,” he said.
“You have all these people who are huddled in refugee camps right now without vaccines for at least the last nine months, including children who should have been vaccinated for polio and adults who, in an outbreak situation, should have received booster vaccines, including health workers.”
On the other hand, the Israeli military also said it would start offering polio vaccines to soldiers in Gaza.
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On Monday (29/7), Israel and Hamas blamed each other for the lack of progress in reaching a ceasefire agreement and the release of hostages in the Gaza Strip despite international mediation.
Hamas accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of adding new conditions and demands to a US-backed ceasefire proposal.
But Netanyahu denied making any changes and said Hamas was the one that insisted on making many changes to the original proposal. (Aljazeera/Z-3)
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