Polio Vaccination Campaign in Northern Gaza to Resume

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Facts

  • Israel confirmed on Friday that the World Health Organization's (WHO) drive to vaccinate children in Gaza for polio will resume in northern Gaza on Saturday after it was paused due to Israeli bombing and military operations.[1][2]
  • The final phase of the campaign had aimed to reach an estimated 119K children under 10 years old in northern Gaza. UNICEF and the WHO said achieving this target is now unlikely due to 'access constraints.'[2]
  • Israel's offensive in northern Gaza has seen mass evacuations, restrictions on humanitarian aid, and raids on hospitals Israel says are used by militants. Israel has launched multiple offensives in the area over the last year to dislodge Hamas fighters.[3]
  • The UN said that the situation in northern Gaza was 'apocalyptic,' adding that residents were “denied basic aid and life-saving supplies' and 'health workers and patients have been taken into [Israeli] custody.'[4]
  • Meanwhile, cease-fire negotiations for both Gaza and Lebanon have again stalled. Israel struck Beirut's southern suburbs early on Friday with at least 10 strikes after almost a week of relative calm.[5]
  • Reuters reported on Friday that US envoy Amos Hochstein asked Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati to declare a unilateral cease-fire with Israel to revive talks. However, both Hochstein and Mikati denied the report, with Mikati saying Lebanon sought a mutual cease-fire and implementation of UN Resolution 1701.[6]

Sources: [1]Timesofisrael, [2]Reuters (a), [3]Associated Press, [4]Al Jazeera, [5]Reuters (b) and [6]Reuters (c).

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by New York Times. Though the situation in the region continues to escalate, the US has stood firm in its role as a mediator. Israel has every right to respond to the daily terror attacks it has seen since Oct. 7. However, it is in no one's interest for tensions to explode into a wider regional war. The US will continue to work toward regional stability.
  • Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. Hamas continues to use Gaza's civilian population as human shields as it increasingly converts schools and hospitals into command and control centers. Indeed, Hamas is solely to blame for the destruction of Gaza and its impact on the civilian population, as it started this terrible war with the massacres of Oct. 7. Israel will continue to pacify the group and confront its regional enemies.
  • Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by +972 Magazine. Israel's true goal in northern Gaza is to starve and exterminate the civilian population so that the region is never inhabited by Palestinians again, paving the way for Israeli settlers. Israeli politicians and military officials have been quite clear about the country's genocidal goals, yet the media continues to ignore their horrifying ambitions. This is a campaign of mass extermination that has received the full backing of the US.
  • Narrative D, as provided by Almayadeen. Hezbollah and Lebanon have experienced immense suffering for supporting Palestine against Israel's genocidal actions, yet the group will continue its noble fight. Hezbollah is ready and able to defend Lebanon from Israeli aggression and its attacks will end when Israel withdraws from Gaza.