4 September 2024

News release

Over 187 000 children under ten years of age were vaccinated with novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) in central Gaza during the first phase of a two-round polio vaccination campaign, conducted between 1–3 September 2024. Vaccination coverage in this phase exceeded the initial estimated target of 157 000 children due to population movement towards central Gaza, and expanded coverage in areas outside the humanitarian pause zone.  
 

23 September 2024

Statement

As world leaders gather in New York for the 79th United Nations General Assembly, and as the threat of a wider regional escalation looms, we renew our demand for an end to the appalling human suffering and humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

We mourn the loss of innocent life everywhere, including those killed on 7 October and during the 11 months of conflict since then. 

We urgently call for a sustained, immediate and unconditional ceasefire. This is the only way to end the suffering of civilians and save lives.

11 October 2024

Statement

The second round of an emergency polio vaccination campaign is scheduled to start on 14 October 2024 in Gaza, to vaccinate an estimated 591 700 children under ten years of age with a second dose of the novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) vaccine.

22 October 2024

Statement

On 21 October, 14 patients and 10 caregivers were transferred from Kamal Adwan in North Gaza to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City during a high-risk, WHO-led joint mission, amid intense hostilities and access restrictions. Despite an initial agreement, the delivery of critical medical supplies, blood, and fuel – resources essential for keeping Kamal Adwan and Al-Awda hospitals operational – was denied just a few hours before the mission began on 20 October. 
 

6 November 2024 

Joint News Release

The second round of the polio vaccination campaign in the Gaza Strip was completed yesterday, with an overall 556 774 children under the age of 10 being vaccinated with a second dose of polio vaccine, and 448 425 children between 2- to 10-years-old receiving vitamin A, following the three phases conducted in the last weeks.

19 January 2025, Jerusalem, Cairo, Geneva – The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomes the Gaza ceasefire, hostage and prisoner release deal, which brings hope for millions of people whose lives have been ravaged by the conflict.

24 July 2024 - Sixteen people from Gaza with complicated medical conditions will arrive in Spain today to receive care there, through an evacuation process involving the World Health Organization (WHO) and multiple partners. Fifteen of them are children, ranging in age from 3 to 17 years old. The mother of one of the children will also be treated in Spain. The patients had been in hospital in Egypt for the past several months, after evacuating from Gaza. They are a small portion of the thousands of other children and adults who need access to specialized medical care outside of Gaza.

30 July 2024 

Jerusalem, Cairo, Geneva - Today, 85 sick and severely injured patients from Gaza were evacuated to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), for specialized care. This extremely complex joint evacuation was supported by the the World Health Organization (WHO) in partnership with the Government of the UAE and other partners. This is the largest medical evacuation outside Gaza since October 2023. 

16 August 2024, two rounds of a polio vaccination campaign are expected to be launched at the end of August and September 2024 across the Gaza Strip to prevent the spread of circulating variant type 2 poliovirus (cVDPV2).  

23 October 2024, Jerusalem/Amman/Geneva- Due to the escalating violence, intense bombardment, mass displacement orders, and lack of assured humanitarian pauses across most of northern Gaza, the Polio Technical Committee for Gaza, including the Palestinian Ministry of Health, World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and partners have been compelled to postpone the third phase of the polio vaccination campaign, which was set to begin today.