At least 27 Palestinians were killed today by Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, as health services resumed vaccinating thousands of children against polio.
In Nuseirat, one of the enclave’s eight historic refugee camps, an Israeli airstrike killed two women and two children. Another eight people died in two other strikes in Gaza City, according to medical sources, while the remaining casualties were reported in strikes in various other areas.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces clashed with Hamas fighters in Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood, Khan Younis and Rafah where residents said the army blew up several houses. Tanks have been invading Zeitoun for a week, according to local residents.
The truce talks are fruitless
After eleven months of war, diplomacy has so far failed to advance a ceasefire agreement to end the fighting and release hostages held in Gaza and many Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
The two warring sides blame each other for the fruitless efforts of the mediators. The US is preparing to present a new proposal to smooth over their differences, but the prospect of significant progress remains slim as the gulf between Israel and Hamas looms large.
The polio vaccination campaign continues
Meanwhile, residents of Khan Younis and displaced families from Rafah are flocking to medical facilities, bringing their children to be vaccinated against polio. The vaccination campaign started after a case was detected, for the first time after 25 years. It is a one-year-old boy, who is paralyzed.
The United Nations agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, reported that at least 160,000 children have received the first dose of the vaccine in the southern Gaza Strip, and medical personnel have begun the second phase of vaccination, benefiting from the agreement between Israel and Hamas for long-hour “pauses” in hostilities.
“Since September 1, UNRWA and its partners have vaccinated nearly 355,000 children against polio in the central and southern Gaza Strip” the service said in a post on the X platform.
From Sunday the campaign will focus on the northern Gaza Strip. According to the World Health Organization, four weeks after the first vaccine, children will need to receive the second dose.
#Gaza #dead #Israeli #strikes #Polio #vaccinations #continue
