Roundup: Gaza launches vaccination campaign for children after two years of war

GAZA, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- Health authorities in the Gaza Strip on Sunday launched a vaccination campaign targeting children under three years old, aiming to prevent outbreaks of infectious diseases after two years of disrupted immunization services caused by the war.

In a press statement, Gaza's health authorities said the campaign is being conducted in 150 health centers across the strip in coordination with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), with support from the United Nations Children's Fund and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The authorities said the campaign will last 10 days and will be implemented in three phases, each separated by one month, to reach children who missed routine vaccinations since the outbreak of the war in October 2023.

Salim al-Qirm, medical director of PRCS al-Saraya Field Hospital in Gaza City, told Xinhua that approximately 45,000 children in Gaza have not received essential vaccines over the past two years.

"The interruption of vaccination programs has increased the likelihood of outbreaks of serious infectious diseases," he said, adding that malnutrition and anemia further weaken children's immunity.

Al-Qirm noted that hundreds of children have died over the past two years due to weakened immunity and poor health conditions. "The health situation of children in Gaza is extremely dire due to shortages of vaccines, food, and infant formula, in addition to the deterioration of healthcare."

He said medical teams have begun administering vaccines for polio, measles, smallpox, and hepatitis, with parents responding positively.

At a vaccination point near the PRCS hospital, Aya Abu Obeid said she brought her two-year-old son to receive his first vaccine dose since 2023.

"I rushed here as soon as I heard about the vaccination campaign because my child had not received any dose for two years due to disruptions in health services," she told Xinhua.

Abu Obeid said that children in Gaza are vulnerable to various diseases due to polluted water, poor sanitation, and accumulated waste, making vaccination urgent.

In al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, Sumaya Ayoub brought her younger child after her older son contracted chickenpox during displacement. She said she had searched in vain for vaccines and saw the campaign as a chance to protect her children from preventable diseases.

On Thursday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that the organization would provide routine immunizations, nutrition services, and growth monitoring to approximately 44,000 children in Gaza, noting that Gaza children "have been cut off from life-saving healthcare for nearly two years due to the conflict." ■