Member of Hamas Political Bureau Izzet Er-Rishk, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin NetanyahuHe responded to Netanyahu’s statements regarding polio vaccination in Gaza. In a written statement, Rişk criticized Netanyahu’s statements on this issue, saying, “Netanyahu’s statement regarding the allocation of space and area in Gaza for polio vaccination is not intended to endorse the calls of the United Nations (UN) and international organizations for a humanitarian ceasefire; on the contrary, it is a deception to continue the war of annihilation and systematic killing.”
Rişk made the following statements in his statement: “This dubious method that Netanyahu and his government are trying to impose will thwart the United Nations’ move and deprive hundreds of children of polio vaccination.”In addition, Rishk called on the UN and the international community to ensure a comprehensive humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, “not as Israel wants”, and to put all kinds of pressure on Netanyahu to vaccinate all children.
According to Israeli media reports, the government had allegedly approved a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip to allow polio vaccination. However, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office denied these reports, saying, “The reports of a temporary ceasefire are unfounded.” Channel 13 television reported that the US Secretary of State Anthony BlinkenThe Israeli government had approved the Israeli government’s request for a temporary ceasefire to vaccinate children in the Gaza Strip against polio.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced on August 16 that a 10-month-old child was diagnosed with polio in the city of Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip. In addition, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and their partners announced that a humanitarian pause in the fighting was needed to allow more than 640,000 children in the Gaza Strip to receive polio vaccinations.
