The first phase of Polio vaccinations in Gaza’s central zone has reached 187,000 children. In a social media post, World Health Organisation Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the health workers had vaccinated 187,000 children since September 1. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the campaign now turns to Gaza’s southern zone for three days, beginning today, and the northern zone will follow. In this ambitious campaign, more than 640,000 children are targeted to receive two oral doses of the vaccine.

Last month, WHO confirmed that a baby was partially paralysed by the type 2 polio virus, the first such case in the territory in the last 25 years. In a significant development amid ongoing conflict, Israel’s military and Hamas have also reached an agreement to implement three separate, zoned three-day pauses in fighting across Gaza to facilitate a crucial polio vaccination campaign. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said regional pauses in the conflict are necessary for the remaining phases of the campaign.