Initiative Commences for Polio Immunization in Gaza
Due to pressure from the World Health Organization (WHO), Israel recently consented to "compassionate halt" periods in the Gaza conflict to inoculate over 640,000 children against polio. This marked the first case of polio in a newborn in the Gaza Strip in a quarter of a century. To prevent the highly infectious virus from spreading, immunizations are initially unfolding in the heart of the Gaza Strip, with additional three-day immunization campaigns planned in the south and north of the coastal region.
On Sunday, Palestinian parents escorted their children to vaccination centers in the core of the Gaza Strip, where they obtained their initial dose. The second dose of the oral vaccine should be administered four weeks after the first. Children ranging from one day old to ten years old are being inoculated.
Meanwhile, two individuals perished in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City on Sunday, as per the authorities controlled by the radical Islamic Hamas. An AFP correspondent also reported artillery fire. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explicitly stated that Israel is not prepared for a "general" truce, but only for temporary and targeted halts in hostilities to allow vaccinations.
The conflict in the Gaza Strip commenced with the significant attack by the radical Islamic Hamas and other militant Palestinian groups on locations in southern Israel on October 7. According to Israeli reports, the Islamists murdered 1205 people and abducted 251 hostages into the Gaza Strip during the brutal attack. On Saturday, the Israeli army discovered the bodies of six hostages in a tunnel in the south of the Palestinian territory.
In response to the Hamas attack, Israel has been engaging in substantial military operations in the Gaza Strip for nearly eleven months. According to Hamas health authorities, which cannot be independently verified, over 40,700 people have been killed since then. International mediators, including the USA, Egypt, and Qatar, have been working tirelessly for months to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage release - unfortunately with no success so far.
The situation has also deteriorated in the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the onset of the Gaza conflict. In a shooting attack near the Tarkumija checkpoint northwest of Hebron on Sunday, three Israeli police officers were assassinated. The Israeli rescue service reported that the deceased were two men and a woman. The medics discovered a vehicle with bullet holes at the scene of the attack. The Israeli army claimed that several suspects may have been involved in the attack and that they are being sought.
On Wednesday, Israel's army initiated a large-scale operation in the West Bank and spoke of actions against terrorism. In the raids and airstrikes thus far, at least 22 Palestinians have been killed, most of whom were fighters from Hamas and other militant Palestinian groups.
Since Friday, the fighting has mainly focused on Jenin, which has long been known as a stronghold of militant Palestinians. On Sunday, fighting could still be heard in the city, and Israeli bulldozers were tearing up streets in the city center.
The vaccination drive against polio is taking place in the heart of the Gaza Strip, which is part of the Palestinian Territory. Despite the ongoing conflict, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to temporary halts in hostilities to allow for these vaccinations.
