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WORLD NEWS Monday 2 SepteMber 2024
Large-scale polio vaccinations begin in war-ravaged Gaza after

first case in 25 years

By WAFAA SHURAFA and ministered at roughly 160 sites
SAMY MAGDY across the territory, including
Associated Press medical centers and schools.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip Children under 10 will receive
(AP) — Palestinian health au- two drops of oral polio vac-
thorities and United Nations cine in two rounds, the sec-
agencies on Sunday began ond to be administered four
a large-scale campaign of weeks after the first.
vaccinations against polio Israel allowed around 1.3
in the Gaza Strip, hoping to million doses to be brought
prevent an outbreak in the into the territory last month,
territory that has been rav- which are now being held
aged by the Israel-Hamas in refrigerated storage in a
war. warehouse in Deir al-Balah.
Authorities plan to vaccinate Another shipment of 400,000
children in central Gaza until doses is set to be delivered
Wednesday before moving to Gaza soon.
on to the more devastated The polio virus that triggered
northern and southern parts this latest outbreak is a mu-
of the strip. The campaign tated virus from an oral polio
began with a small number vaccine. The oral polio vac-
of vaccinations on Saturday cine contains weakened live
and aims to reach about virus and in very rare cases,
640,000 children. A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a hospital in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza that virus is shed by those
Gaza's Health Ministry said Strip, Sunday, Sept. 1, 2024. who are vaccinated and
more than 72,600 children Associated Press can evolve into a new form
received vaccines Sunday. the presence of a paralysis been displaced within the Wafaa Obaid, who brought capable of starting new epi-
The World Health Organiza- case indicates there could besieged territory, with her three children to the Al- demics.
tion has said Israel agreed to be hundreds more who have hundreds of thousands Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir The war in Gaza began
limited pauses in the fighting been infected but aren't crammed into squalid tent al-Balah to get the vaccina- when Hamas-led militants
to facilitate the campaign. showing symptoms. camps. tions. stormed into Israel on Oct.
There were initial reports of Most people who have po- Health officials have ex- Ammar Ammar, a spokes- 7, killing some 1,200 people,
Israeli strikes in central Gaza lio do not experience symp- pressed alarm about dis- person for the U.N. children's mostly civilians, and abduct-
early Sunday, but it was not toms, and those who do usu- ease outbreaks as uncol- agency, said it hopes both ing around 250 hostages.
immediately known if any- ally recover in a week or so. lected garbage has piled parties adhere to a tem- Around 100 remain in cap-
one was killed or wounded. But there is no cure, and up and the bombing of porary truce in designated tivity, about a third of whom
The pause ended Sunday when polio causes paraly- critical infrastructure has areas to enable families to are believed to be dead.
afternoon, according to a sis, it is usually permanent. If sent putrid water flowing reach health facilities. Israel's retaliatory offensive
schedule released by Israel. the paralysis affects breath- through the streets. Polio is "This is a first step," he told The has killed over 40,000 Pal-
Israel has said the vaccina- ing muscles, the disease can spread through fecal matter. Associated Press. "But there estinians, according to the
tion program will continue be fatal. Widespread hunger has left is no alternative to a cease- Health Ministry, which does
through Sept. 9 and last eight The vaccination campaign people even more vulner- fire because it's not only po- not say whether those killed
hours a day. faces challenges, from on- able to illness. lio that threatens children in were fighters or civilians. The
Gaza recently reported its going fighting to devastat- "We escaped death with Gaza, but also other factors, war has caused vast destruc-
first polio case in 25 years — ed roads and hospitals shut our children, and fled from including malnutrition and tion across the territory, with
a 10-month-old boy, now down by the war. Around place to place for the sake the inhuman conditions they entire neighborhoods wiped
paralyzed in a leg. The World 90% of Gaza's population of our children, and now we are living in." out and critical infrastructure
Health Organization says of 2.3 million people have have these diseases," said The vaccinations will be ad- heavily damaged.q

Mexico offers escorted rides north from

southern Mexico for migrants with U.S.
asylum appointments

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico from southern Mexico more wants more migrants to
will offer escorted bus rides attractive to migrants who wait in southern Mexico far-
from southern Mexico to the otherwise would push north ther from the U.S. border.
U.S. border for non-Mexican to Mexico City or the border. Migrants typically complain
migrants who have received The announcement came a there is little work available
a United States asylum ap- week after the U.S. govern- in southern Mexico for a wait
pointment, the government ment expanded access to that can last months. Many Migrants walk along the highway through Suchiate, Chiapas
announced Saturday. the CBP One application to carry debts for their trip and state in southern Mexico, July 21, 2024, during their journey
north toward the U.S. border.
The National Immigration southern Mexico. Access to feel pressure to work. Associated Press
Institute said the buses will the app, which allows asy- The migrants who avail them-
leave from the southern cit- lum seekers to register and selves of the buses will also re- Previously, Mexican authori- but some migrants reported
ies of Villahermosa and Ta- await an appointment, had ceive a 20-day transit permit ties said they would respect being swept up at check-
pachula. It appeared to be previously been restricted to allowing them legal passage migrants who showed that points and shipped back
an attempt to make apply- central and northern Mexico. across Mexico, the institute's they had a scheduled asylum south, forced to miss their
ing for asylum appointments The Mexican government statement said. appointment at the border, appointments.q