In a statement, World Health Organization spokesman Christian Lindmeier said (WHO), said vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (VDPV2) was detected in sewage samples collected on June 23 at six locations in Khan Younis and Deir al Balah.
To date, no one in Gaza has been treated for paralysis or other symptoms caused by poliovirus infection.
“It is important to note that at this point the virus has only been isolated from the environment; there have been no associated cases of paralysis,” he told reporters in Geneva. As part of the response efforts, WHO in the occupied Palestinian territory is already working with the local health authority, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) and partners to assess how far the poliovirus has spread.
This work will determine what measures are needed to stop further spread, “including rapid vaccination campaigns,” the WHO spokesperson explained.
White flags
Meanwhile, the UN Human Rights Office for the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OHCHR OPT) described evidence that people in Gaza are still suffering “tremendously”, with some “holding white flags” as they search for shelter.
“People are moving from north to south again, although they are making the journey knowing that it is fraught with danger,” said Ajith Sunghay, head of OHCHR OPT.I saw a motorcycle and trailer full of personal belongings smoldering on the road. There was no body. But it was clear that no one could have survived the strike.. On the same road, I saw a bloody donkey cart, also loaded with personal belongings. This too was abandoned. It is not clear why and who carried out these attacks.”
The UN human rights official described the impact of Israel’s “dismantling” of the enclave’s ability to maintain public order and security in Gaza.Our office has documented alleged unlawful killings of local police officers and humanitarian workers, and the strangulation of supplies vital to the survival of civilians. Anarchy is spreading.”
“The hostile environment created by the war and the breakdown of civil order also pose enormous challenges to a meaningful humanitarian response to the enormous needs of the people.”
Polio eradication hampered
Wild poliovirus was eradicated from Gaza more than 25 years ago thanks to a massive vaccination campaign. According to the WHO, the pre-war vaccination rate was 95 percent in 2022.
But more than nine months of war, repeated mass displacement and the “decimation of the health system, lack of security, obstruction of access, continued population displacement, shortages of medical supplies, poor water quality and weakened sanitation” have led to the “perfect environment” forVaccine-preventable diseases spread – polio is just one of them – noted Christian Lindmeier of the WHO.
According to the UN health agency official, in Gaza, only 16 of 36 hospitals are currently partially operational and 45 of 105 primary health care facilities are operational. He stressed that only a ceasefire would allow for the rapid scaling up of vaccination activities “to fill the gaps created by the ongoing war.”
From WHO’s Global Polio Eradication Programme, communications officer Oliver Rosenbauer explained that poliovirus can emerge in areas where low vaccination rates allow the weakened form of the orally administered vaccine virus strain to mutate into a stronger version that can cause paralysis.
“We have genetic markers to indicate when that happens. And so these isolates that have been found … are genetically mutated to the point where they can cause paralysis,” he said. “It’s not a wild (virus), but it’s still a poliovirus in the sense that it can also cause the same paralysis.”
Financing boost
In a related development, the head of UNRWA said welcome the UK’s decision to resume funding to the agency “at a critical time, as the agency continues to face serious and unprecedented attacks”.
Sixteen countries withdrew $450 million in funding from the UN agency over unsubstantiated allegations that staff were involved with terrorist organizations, following Hamas-led terror attacks on multiple Israeli targets on October 7 that killed some 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages. Only the United States has not reversed its decision to fund UNRWA.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini’s online message on Friday highlighted the “life-saving and human development work” of the agency’s teams, who are the main providers of aid to millions of Palestinians in Gaza and the region.
Mr Lazzarini also reiterated his commitment to implementing the 50 recommendations of an independent report on UNRWAfueled by Israeli accusations of terrorist links.
