Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
A polio vaccination campaign to begin in Gaza on Sunday will test whether a commitment to allow humanitarian pauses will work, UNRWA told The National on Friday.
Late on Thursday, the World Health Organisation said it had secured “a preliminary commitment for area-specific humanitarian pauses” in Gaza to allow UN health officials to administer polio vaccinations to thousands of children under the age of 10.
UNRWA, the World Health Organisation and Unicef, the UN agency for children, will be working together to deliver polio vaccinations to 640,000 children in the enclave, which has been under Israeli bombardment for more than 10 months.
UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma said the pauses in fighting will be implemented in specific areas where the vaccine is being delivered and agency staff have been working closely with Unicef and the Israeli authorities. The WHO said the pauses would take place between 6am and 3pm on the agreed days.
UNRWA will launch its polio campaign through its primary healthcare clinics, administering the vaccines inside 10 of the agency’s functional health centres, and with the help of almost 100 mobile health teams moving across different shelters and areas where Gazans have sought refuge, Ms Touma said.
“The idea is to give two doses to every child under the age of 10, which is just over 600,000 kids, as a first round. And then with polio, you have got to do two rounds,” the official said.
The agency plans to do the same at the end of September. “Over 1,000 people will be working with us on the campaign, that includes medical doctors, nurses, drivers, logisticians, and you have the safety guarantees to go around to all these shelters.”
Ms Touma predicts the campaign will last for nine to 10 days, and will cover Gaza in three phases.
“We're going to start first in the middle areas, then move to the south and then to the north. But it's really all going to depend on these pauses and whether they work, whether they come into place, whether they're implemented.”
About 1.2 million vaccine doses have been delivered to Gaza ahead of the campaign starting on Sunday, a WHO official said on Friday.
About 400,000 additional doses are on the way to the territory, said Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the occupied Palestinian territories.
However, security fears will remain a major concern throughout this campaign. The team “always fears an attack”, Ms Touma said, adding that no one and nowhere is safe in Gaza.
A successful delivery of the vaccinations would be a win for every child, she says, even in Israel. “Polio is such a vicious virus that doesn't know borders or checkpoints or lines of fire or lines of control, so we've got to reach every child as soon as possible.”
Determined mothers
For mother-of-five Alaa Fazaa, nothing can stand in the way of vaccinating her five-year-old daughter against the polio virus.
The 42-year-old, who is living in the tented area of Al Mawasi, west of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, told The National: “Even if there's no truce, I will get her vaccinated, even under fire.”
Earlier this month, the battered enclave reported its first polio case in 25 years, promoting widespread fears of a larger outbreak.
The origin of the virus is unclear, with some reports suggesting it might have crossed over from Egypt. However, once it appeared in Gaza it spread due to the breakdown of wastewater treatment infrastructure and the build-up of tonnes of rubbish in overcrowded areas like Al Mawasi, where 30,000 people now live in every square kilometre, according to UN figures.
Fears of the virus rapidly spreading prompted UN agencies to push for a temporary pause in fighting to vaccinate the thousands of children at risk.
“We live under constant bombardment, and we continue with our lives – buying necessities and fetching water – under fire. Now they're waiting for a truce to vaccinate the children? Why are they wasting time? We need to vaccinate the children as soon as possible,” Ms Fazaa said.
Three of Nedaa Al Moghrabi's five children are under 10. “One of my children is two years old, and I'm really afraid – what if he gets the virus? The environment around us is so distressing, and you can imagine life inside a tent,” she told The National.
“We've already suffered so much. What more are we waiting for?"
The 39-year-old said she is trying to shield her children from the disease, but doing so is difficult because the tents are so close together.
Repeated orders by the Israeli army for already displaced Palestinians to leave have resulted in waves of movement from ever-shrinking “safe zones” to overcrowded areas.
Mother of two Dohaa Ahmad is very worried about her daughters' health. She is one of thousands of women who have given birth during the war, in a broken medical system. Her six-month-old daughter has not had all the required vaccinations for a child her age.
“I gave birth during the war and my child suffered from respiratory problems due to inhaling smoke from firewood. Her immune system is weak,” she told The National.
Ms Ahmad lives in a tent in Deir Al Balah, in central Gaza, with two children, both under the age of three.
“Ever since I heard about the virus, I've been researching and reading about it. I want to vaccinate my girls, especially the youngest,” she said.
Vaccination rates in Gaza have plummeted during the war with many parents unable to inoculate their children against preventable illnesses, including polio.
Security fears
The temporary pause in fighting is “not the ideal way forward, but a workable way forward”, Unicef spokesman Jonathan Crickx said on Friday.
“Not doing anything would be really bad. We have to stop this transmission in Gaza, and we have to avoid the transmission outside Gaza,” the official said.
Mr Crickx said three days for each area should be enough to reach the targeted population, according to UN assessments but the agreement stipulates that an extra day can be requested if needed.
Conditions for aid workers are not ideal, and the security situation in Gaza is being “monitored closely”, Mr Crickx said. But the pause should mean that no military activity takes place in areas where the vaccination campaign is being carried out.
On Tuesday, a World Food Programme convoy was shot at 10 times, while it was metres away from an Israeli checkpoint. No injuries were reported but the organisation said it was “temporarily suspending staff movements”. More aid workers have been killed in Gaza than in any other UN mission since the organisation's was founded in 1945.
Due to constant displacement and fighting, NGO workers have also said they lost access to vital facilities that allow them to supply people with much-needed aid, including water.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
A German university was a good fit for the family budget
Annual fees for the Technical University of Munich - £600
Shared rental accommodation per month depending on the location ranges between £200-600
The family had budgeted for food, books, travel, living expenses - £20,000 annually
Overall costs in Germany are lower than the family estimated
As proof that the student has the ability to take care of expenses, international students must open a blocked account with about £8,640
Students are permitted to withdraw £720 per month
ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers Henderson, Pickford, Pope.
Defenders Alexander-Arnold, Chilwell, Coady, Dier, Gomez, Keane, Maguire, Maitland-Niles, Mings, Saka, Trippier, Walker.
Midfielders Henderson, Mount, Phillips, Rice, Ward-Prowse, Winks.
Forwards Abraham, Barnes, Calvert-Lewin, Grealish, Ings, Kane, Rashford, Sancho, Sterling.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
BOSH!'s pantry essentials
Nutritional yeast
This is Firth's pick and an ingredient he says, "gives you an instant cheesy flavour". He advises making your own cream cheese with it or simply using it to whip up a mac and cheese or wholesome lasagne. It's available in organic and specialist grocery stores across the UAE.
Seeds
"We've got a big jar of mixed seeds in our kitchen," Theasby explains. "That's what you use to make a bolognese or pie or salad: just grab a handful of seeds and sprinkle them over the top. It's a really good way to make sure you're getting your omegas."
Umami flavours
"I could say soya sauce, but I'll say all umami-makers and have them in the same batch," says Firth. He suggests having items such as Marmite, balsamic vinegar and other general, dark, umami-tasting products in your cupboard "to make your bolognese a little bit more 'umptious'".
Onions and garlic
"If you've got them, you can cook basically anything from that base," says Theasby. "These ingredients are so prevalent in every world cuisine and if you've got them in your cupboard, then you know you've got the foundation of a really nice meal."
Your grain of choice
Whether rice, quinoa, pasta or buckwheat, Firth advises always having a stock of your favourite grains in the cupboard. "That you, you have an instant meal and all you have to do is just chuck a bit of veg in."
'Cheb%20Khaled'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKhaled%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBelieve%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
Price, base: Dh1,731,672
Engine: 6.5-litre V12
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
Company%20profile
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
SM Town Live is on Friday, April 6 at Autism Rocks Arena, Dubai. Tickets are Dh375 at www.platinumlist.net
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
RESULTS
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m
Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Fernando Jara (jockey), Ahmed Al Mehairbi (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: AF Seven Skies, Bernardo Pinheiro, Qais Aboud
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
Winner: Almahroosa, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
Winner: AF Sumoud, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,200m
Winner: AF Majalis, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Adventurous, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
Most wanted allegations
- Benjamin Macann, 32: involvement in cocaine smuggling gang.
- Jack Mayle, 30: sold drugs from a phone line called the Flavour Quest.
- Callum Halpin, 27: over the 2018 murder of a rival drug dealer.
- Asim Naveed, 29: accused of being the leader of a gang that imported cocaine.
- Calvin Parris, 32: accused of buying cocaine from Naveed and selling it on.
- John James Jones, 31: allegedly stabbed two people causing serious injuries.
- Callum Michael Allan, 23: alleged drug dealing and assaulting an emergency worker.
- Dean Garforth, 29: part of a crime gang that sold drugs and guns.
- Joshua Dillon Hendry, 30: accused of trafficking heroin and crack cocain.
- Mark Francis Roberts, 28: grievous bodily harm after a bungled attempt to steal a £60,000 watch.
- James ‘Jamie’ Stevenson, 56: for arson and over the seizure of a tonne of cocaine.
- Nana Oppong, 41: shot a man eight times in a suspected gangland reprisal attack.
Results
2.15pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Arrab, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
2.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Mahaleel, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel.
3.15pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum handicap (TB) Dh200,000 2,000m; Winner: Dolmen, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
3.45pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Amang Alawda, Sandro Paiva, Bakhit Al Ketbi.
4.15pm: The Crown Prince of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 1,200m; Winner: AF Alwajel, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
4.45pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 2,000m; Winner: Al Jazi, Jesus Rosales, Eric Lemartinel.
