The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) aim to vaccinate approximately 600,000 children in the Gaza Strip against polio, as reported by the WHO.
This campaign follows the recent discovery of poliovirus in wastewater samples in Gaza, indicating continued virus circulation and posing a risk to children.
The emergency #polio outbreak response in the #Gaza Strip is continuing, with a mass vaccination campaign scheduled from 22 to 26 February 2025.
The upcoming vaccination campaign aims to reach all children under 10 years of age, including those previously missed, to close… pic.twitter.com/s0pRJbl8UM
— UNICEF MENA – يونيسف الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا (@UNICEFmena) February 19, 2025
As of 2008, Poliovirus was no longer recognized as a distinct species. As of August 2024, Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only two countries where polio is still classified as endemic. But currently, an emergency response to a polio outbreak in the Gaza Strip is ongoing, with a mass vaccination campaign scheduled from February 22 to 26, 2025. Over 591,000 children under the age of 10 will receive the novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) to protect them from polio.
Low immunity in certain population groups allows the virus to spread and potentially cause disease. The current conditions in Gaza, including overcrowded shelters and severely damaged water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure that promote fecal-oral transmission, create favorable circumstances for the further spread of the poliovirus. Additionally, widespread population movement due to the ongoing ceasefire may further contribute to the virus’s transmission.
Two earlier vaccination rounds, conducted in September and October 2024, were successful in reaching over 95% of the target population. However, as the virus persists in the environment, further vaccination efforts are necessary to reach every child and boost overall immunity. The continued presence of the virus remains a threat to children with low or no immunity, both in Gaza and across the region.
In 2024, health workers encountered significant challenges in accessing certain areas of central, northern, and southern Gaza, requiring special coordination to enter during the ongoing war. In regions such as Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, and Beit Hanoun, where humanitarian pauses for the vaccination campaign were intermittent, around 7,000 children missed their vaccination. With the recent ceasefire, health workers now have considerably better access.
It must be pointed out that no new polio cases have been reported since a ten-month-old child was paralyzed in August 2024. However, recent environmental samples from Deir al Balah and Khan Younes, collected in December 2024 and January 2025, confirm ongoing poliovirus transmission. The strain detected is genetically linked to the poliovirus found in the Gaza Strip in July 2024.
The upcoming vaccination campaign aims to reach all children under 10 years old, including those previously missed, to close immunity gaps and end the outbreak. The use of the oral polio vaccine is crucial to preventing further spread of the virus. An additional vaccination round is planned for April.
