Yumi
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The United Nations temporarily paused aid deliveries in Gaza on Monday over safety concerns after the Israeli military issued new evacuation orders, a senior UN official said, possibly complicating the launch of a polio vaccination campaign.
Israel’s military on Sunday ordered more evacuations in parts of Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza, forcing many displaced Palestinians to flee again as the UN prepares to vaccinate more than 640,000 children amid concerns about the spread of the disease in the enclave.
Earlier this month, health authorities confirmed Gaza’s first polio case in 25 years in an unvaccinated 10-month-old. It came just weeks after sewage samples taken in Gaza in late June tested positive for the virus, prompting a warning from the World Health Organization (WHO) that it was “just a matter of time” before it infects thousands of children.
The highly contagious disease, which mainly affects children under the age of 5, targets the nervous system and can cause paralysis and death in extreme cases.
On Monday, the Israeli agency responsible for approving aid into Gaza, COGAT, said more than 1.2 million doses of the vaccine had arrived in the strip through the Kerem Shalon crossing. It said the vaccination campaign, led by WHO and the UN children’s agency, would be conducted in coordination with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
According to the senior UN official, there will temporarily be no deliveries under the latest conditions.
CNN has reached out to COGAT regarding the claims.
Israel’s military on Sunday ordered more evacuations in parts of Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza, forcing many displaced Palestinians to flee again as the UN prepares to vaccinate more than 640,000 children amid concerns about the spread of the disease in the enclave.
Earlier this month, health authorities confirmed Gaza’s first polio case in 25 years in an unvaccinated 10-month-old. It came just weeks after sewage samples taken in Gaza in late June tested positive for the virus, prompting a warning from the World Health Organization (WHO) that it was “just a matter of time” before it infects thousands of children.
The highly contagious disease, which mainly affects children under the age of 5, targets the nervous system and can cause paralysis and death in extreme cases.
On Monday, the Israeli agency responsible for approving aid into Gaza, COGAT, said more than 1.2 million doses of the vaccine had arrived in the strip through the Kerem Shalon crossing. It said the vaccination campaign, led by WHO and the UN children’s agency, would be conducted in coordination with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
According to the senior UN official, there will temporarily be no deliveries under the latest conditions.
CNN has reached out to COGAT regarding the claims.
