Israel will pause its fighting in designated areas in Gaza to allow the World Health Organization to administer polio vaccines, the WHO’s top representative in the region said Thursday.
The admittance of the vaccinations comes after a case of polio was detected in a baby in Gaza earlier this month. Rik Peeperkorn, the head of WHO’s offices in West Bank and Gaza, said at a press briefing Thursday that the organization plans to vaccinate more than 640,000 children through the initiative, which will be done in phases.
“I think this is a way forward,” Peeperkorn said. “I’m not going to say this is the ideal way forward, but this is a workable way forward. Not doing anything would be really bad. We have to stop this transmission in Gaza, and we have to avoid the transmission outside Gaza.”
The Israel Defense Forces will suspend its offensive campaign in one part of Gaza for three days from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the vaccinations being split between children from northern and southern Gaza over two three-day periods, according to the New York Times. The effort to vaccinate Palestinian children is expected to begin Sunday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Wednesday that the vaccination effort is not a ceasefire, according to the outlet.
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The war in Gaza has been raging for nearly 11 months since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began after the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel.
As fighting has continued, pressure has mounted for the war to conclude with the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. Several of the hostages have been freed through a past temporary ceasefire and Israeli rescue missions.