Israel is not allowing World Health Organization (WHO) staff to enter the northern Gaza Strip to vaccinate children against polio, Regional Emergency Director for WHO’s Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean Rick Brennan said.
Brennan said at a press conference in Qatar that WHO has successfully vaccinated children under 10 against polio in the central and southern Gaza Strip, and now the organization needs to organize a new round of vaccination.
However, WHO has not yet received permission for staff to enter northern Gaza, Brennan said on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Israeli media reported that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin sent a letter to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer threatening to impose an arms embargo on Israel if the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip is not resolved within a month. On Wednesday, the Axios news portal reported, citing sources, that Israeli officials vowed to quickly improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
