The U.N. World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday announced Israel agreed to plans of implementing a series of limited humanitarian pauses in the ongoing conflict in Gaza to ensure that hundreds of thousands of children can receive polio vaccinations.
Thursday's announcement follows the confirmation of the first polio case in the Palestinian territory in 25 years after a baby contracted the virus.
The breaks in the fighting will last three days each in various parts of the embattled region, starting on Sunday in central Gaza, according to Rik Peeperkorn, the WHO's representative in the Palestinian territories.
Following this, similar pauses will take place in southern and northern Gaza. Each pause will extend for eight to nine hours daily, though Peeperkorn indicated that more time may be needed to complete the vaccination campaign.
The initiative aims to vaccinate around 640,000 children under the age of 10 with coordination from Israeli authorities.
"I'm not going to say this is the ideal way forward. But this is a workable way forward," Peeperkorn said.
He added, "It will happen and should happen because we have an agreement."
To prevent the spread of polio, health workers from aid agencies must vaccinate at least 90 percent of the children under the age of 10 in Gaza, according to the WHO.
The humanitarian pauses do not amount to a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas—a goal that mediators from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have been pursuing in ongoing negotiations.
The Associated Press reported that Israel didn't immediately comment on Thursday about the WHO's vaccination campaign, but Israel's army has previously announced limited pauses in the conflict for international humanitarian operations.
An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, acknowledged the expectation of a tactical pause to allow the vaccinations, although details have yet to be finalized. The Israeli army has previously sanctioned limited pauses in specific areas to enable international humanitarian efforts.
The urgency for vaccinations follows the case of 10-month-old Abdel-Rahman Abu El-Jedian, who was partially paralyzed by a mutated strain of the virus found in the waste of vaccinated individuals. According to the WHO, the baby boy is the first confirmed case of polio inside Gaza in 25 years.
The child, born just before the outbreak of hostilities on October 7, was not vaccinated due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. According to The Associated Press, he is one of hundreds of thousands of children who was not vaccinated because of the ongoing fighting.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
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