Polio outbreak threatens Gaza as Israel vaccinates soldiers
A senior WHO official stated on July 23rd that he was “extremely worried” about the possibility of a polio outbreak in war-torn Gaza, as the virus was detected in sewage, threatening the lives of 2 million people in the enclave, reports Middle East Eye and Arab News.
Positive test samples of polio in the region have prompted the Israeli government to offer poliovirus vaccines to “all ground troops” fighting in Gaza and reserves.
Ayadil Saparbekov, WHO team lead for health emergencies in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, stated that the circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 cases differed from environmental samples from the sewage.
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Saparbekov told reporters in Geneva via video link from Jerusalem that “there is a high risk of spreading of the circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus in Gaza, not only because of the detection but because of the very dire situation with the water sanitation,”. The official warned that it may “spill over internationally, at a very high point.”
Unicef and the WHO are scheduled to send workers to Gaza on July 25th to collect human stool samples for risk assessment. The workers’ findings will provide a plan of action to tackle the outbreak, including a mass vaccination campaign.
The samples help in understanding “what kind of vaccine should be used and what the age group of the population that will need to be vaccinated” stated Saparbekov.
Polio is a highly infectious disease that largely affects children under five years of age. It causes permanent paralysis in approximately 1 in 200 infections which can then result in death.
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The deteriorating sanitary conditions in Gaza have led to the virulent spread of communicable diseases amidst a healthcare system in crisis. 14,000 people are in need of being evacuated from the Gaza Strip in need of urgent healthcare as the Israeli offensive continues into its ninth month.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) stated last week that all health facilities in southern Gaza were at “breaking point”, leaving those suffering with life-threatening wounds untreatable.
“Mass casualty events” such as the latest Israeli strikes on the al-Mawasi refugee camp, killing 90 Palestinians, have kept Rafah’s 60-bed field hospitals at near full capacity, stated the organisation.
The Israeli military has stated that they are cooperating with other organisations to vaccinate Gaza’s population, with 300,000 vaccines supplied so far.
Middle East Eye / Arab News and agencies
