The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Tuesday that 92% of the targeted children in the ongoing polio vaccination campaign in Gaza have been vaccinated since the initiative began on Saturday.
WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territory, Richard Peeperkorn, told a UN press briefing in Geneva that 547,848 children under the age of 10 have received the polio vaccine out of the 591,000 targeted.
"Despite some rain and cold, parents brought their children to the vaccination centers, while mobile teams actively reached out to communities," he said.
The campaign, launched to stop poliovirus circulation following positive environmental samples from Deir al Balah and Khan Younis, is supported by 1,660 vaccination teams and over 1,200 social mobilizers, he said.
Two previous vaccination rounds in September and October 2024 reached over 95% of children, but access challenges in areas such as Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, and Beit Hanoun left about 7,000 children unvaccinated, according to Peeperkorn.
"The recent ceasefire means health workers have considerably better access now," he said, adding that sustained peace is crucial not only for the polio campaign but for all vaccine-preventable diseases.
He also underscored the need for clean water, sanitation, and healthcare access to protect children from preventable diseases.
- OVER $7B NEEDED FOR HEALTH SECTOR RECOVERY
Citing a joint assessment by the World Bank, the European Union, and the UN, Peeperkorn said Gaza's health sector has suffered extensive damage, with 772 health facilities either completely or partially destroyed, leading to an estimated economic loss of $1.3 billion.
Losses in healthcare functionality and workforce disruptions have amounted to $6.3 billion, further exacerbating the region's health crisis.
The total estimated needs for the health sector recovery -- split between reconstruction costs and service delivery needs -- are projected to exceed $7 billion, he said.
The WHO also reported that since February 1,889 patients, including 335 children, have been evacuated via the Rafah crossing. Since October 2023, a total of 6,295 patients -- 4,640 of them children -- have been evacuated.
Peeperkorn drew attention to the tens of thousands of people needing medical evacuation and urged: "We need to expand the medical corridors, ... including the corridor to the East Jerusalem hospitals and the West Bank, otherwise, we will be medivacing (medical evacuating) for years to come."
