Polio stalks Gazans as 'anarchy' spreads, humanitarians warn

By UN News

Jul 19, 2024 8:11 am

To add to the devastation of war and the complete breakdown of law and order, Gazans now have to contend with the threat of highly infectious polio disease linked to the disastrous sanitation situation created by the conflict, the UN health agency said on Friday.

In a statement, Christian Lindmeier, spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO), said that vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (VDPV2) had been identified at six locations in sewage samples collected on 23 June from Khan Younis and Deir al Balah.

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