Israel agrees pauses in Gaza fighting to allow polio vaccination of children | BBC News

Israel has agreed to a series of “humanitarian pauses” in Gaza to allow for the vaccination of children against polio, the World Health Organisation has said.

The campaign will aim to vaccinate around 640,000 children across the Gaza strip. It will be rolled out in three separate stages, across the central, southern and northern parts of the strip. During each stage, fighting will pause for three consecutive days between 06:00 and 15:00 local time.

The agreement comes days after UN officials said a 10-month-old baby had been partially paralysed after contracting Gaza’s first case of polio for 25 years.

The campaign will be administered by Palestinian health ministry in Gaza in collaboration with the World Health Organisation and UNICEF.

The WHO is aiming to achieve 90% vaccine coverage across the strip, the level needed to stop transmission of the virus within Gaza.

Polio is highly infectious and is most often spread through sewage and contaminated water. It can cause disfigurement and paralysis and can be fatal.

Clive Myrie presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Lucy Williamson.

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