WHO says staggered pauses in Gaza fighting will allow polio vaccines
That will be followed by another three-day pause in southern Gaza and then another in northern Gaza. He thinks they might need additional days to complete the vaccinations.
On Thursday, the U.N. World Health Organization (WHO) announced that there will be limited pauses in fighting in Gaza to facilitate polio vaccinations for hundreds of thousands of children. This decision follows the confirmation of the first polio case in 25 years in the Palestinian territory.
Rik Peeperkorn, the WHO representative in the Palestinian territories, described these as “humanitarian pauses,” which will each last three days in different areas of the conflict-stricken region. The vaccination campaign is set to begin on Sunday in central Gaza, followed by additional pauses in southern Gaza and northern Gaza. Peeperkorn indicated that more time might be needed to complete the vaccinations.
The goal is to immunize 640,000 children under the age of 10, with the campaign coordinated with Israeli authorities.
“I’m not going to say this is the ideal way forward. But this is a workable way forward,” Peeperkorn said regarding the humanitarian pauses. He later added, “It will happen and should happen because we have an agreement.”
These humanitarian pauses do not constitute a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, which mediators including the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar have been striving for, with ongoing discussions this week.
An Israeli official, speaking anonymously as the plan is not yet finalized, mentioned that a tactical pause is expected to facilitate the vaccination efforts. The Israeli army has previously implemented limited pauses in specific areas to support international humanitarian operations.
