Gaza declares polio epidemic 25 years after disease was eradicated in enclave

The spread of the disease is disastrous for neighbouring countries and Israel itself, hospital director says

A Palestinian toddler suffering from a skin disease in Deir Al Balah. The spread of skin diseases has become rampant due to overcrowding. AP

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A polio epidemic has broken out in the Gaza Strip 25 years after Palestine was declared free from the highly infectious disease.

Inoculation campaigns in the enclave came to halt after the start of the war with Israel, which has destroyed sewage infrastructure and disrupted waste-collection services.

Thousands of tonnes of rubbish have accumulated since then, creating conditions suitable for the spread of diseases.

Compounding the crisis has been the displacement of the majority of Gaza's population, a situation that has deprived them of clean water and sanitation services, Gaza's Health Ministry said as it declared the endemic.

“This poses a health threat to the residents of the Gaza Strip and neighbouring countries, and a setback to the global polio eradication programme,” the ministry said.

Dr Medhat Abbas, director general of Al Shifa Medical Complex, told The National that the streets were full of sewage.

“Personal hygiene is absent. You can't wash your hands, even after you've used the bathroom,” he said. “So, there's pollution and this disease is spread through faeces.”

Before the detection of the poliovirus, foreign medics had to burn their clothes before returning to their countries after hepatitis A and other communicable diseases were detected, another doctor told The National.

A displaced child with skin disease shows his scars in Deir Al Balah, central Gaza. AP

The poliovirus affects nerves in the spinal cord and slowly causes paralysis.

“People can suffer from fever and fatigue for up to 10 years,” Dr Abbas said. “The impact of it is disastrous – for neighbouring countries and even for the Israelis themselves.”

The spread of skin diseases has become rampant as hospitals and clinics are overcrowded, he added.

The World Health Organisation said on Friday that it would send more than a million vaccines to Gaza to protect children.

Despite setting up a committee alongside the WHO and the UN children's fund, Dr Abbas said the Health Ministry would not be able to combat the spread of polio as long as borders remained closed.

Gaza obtains its water through three pipelines run by Israel's national water company.

However, since the start of war on October 7, only one of them is operational and pumping at less than half of its capacity, according to the UN office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs.