Israeli fire kills dozens in Gaza, polio vaccinations in full swing

A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a hospital in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, on Sept. 1, 2024. (Abdel Kareem Hana / AP Photo)

CAIRO -

Israeli forces killed at least 48 Palestinians in the past 24 hours across the Gaza Strip as they battled Hamas-led militants, Palestinian officials said on Monday, while medics conducted a second day of polio vaccinations for children in the enclave.

Palestinian and UN officials said more than 80,000 children were vaccinated in central areas of Gaza on Sunday, the first day of the campaign.

Hamas and Israel have agreed to brief pauses in fighting to allow the campaign to vaccinate some 640,000 children to go ahead. No violations have been reported near vaccination facilities.

Seven Palestinians were killed in two Israeli air strikes on Gaza City, Palestinian officials said on Monday, while two air strikes killed six others in Bureij and Nuseirat, two of the Gaza Strip's eight historic refugee camps.

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There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

The armed wings of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad said fighters had confronted Israeli forces in north, south and in some central area of Gaza with anti-tank rockets and mortar fire.

UNRWA, the UN Palestinian refugee agency, repeated its call on Monday for an immediate ceasefire to help ensure a successful and safe polio vaccination campaign.

"On 1st day only, @UNRWA teams & partners reached around 87,000 children according to @WHO. Efforts are ongoing to provide children with this key vaccine, but what they need most is a #CeasefireNow," it said on the X social media platform.

Israel and Hamas have continued to trade blame for the failure to conclude a ceasefire, that would end the war, and see the release of Israeli and foreign hostages held in Gaza and many Palestinians jailed in Israel.

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Deadly disease

Parents continued bringing their infants to be vaccinated at medical facilities on Monday. The World Health Organization (WHO) says a drop in routine vaccinations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including Gaza, has contributed to the re-emergence of polio in the area.

Polio myelitis is a highly infectious virus that can cause paralysis and death in infants, with under-2s most at risk.

The WHO confirmed last month that a baby was partially paralyzed by the type 2 polio virus, the first such case in the territory in 25 years.

Palestinians say a key reason for the return of polio is the collapse of the health system and destruction of most hospitals in the Gaza Strip. Israel accuses Hamas of using hospitals for military purposes, which the Islamist group denies.

The 11-month old war in Gaza was triggered after Hamas militants on Oct. 7 stormed into southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages by Israeli tallies.

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Since then, an estimated 40,786 Palestinians have been killed and more than 94,000 injured in Gaza, the enclave's health ministry said on Monday.

Israel was gripped by a general strike on Monday as labour unions and businesses sought to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government into agreeing to a deal to bring the remaining Israeli hostages home. Israel's Labour Court later ruled that the strike must end at 2.30 p.m. (1130 GMT).

Israelis have been protesting since the bodies of six hostages were recovered in a tunnel in southern Gaza at the weekend.

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi. Editing by Gareth Jones)