Gaza Begins 2nd Round of Polio Vaccine Push

Palestinian children receive drops as part of a polio vaccination campaign, in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on October 14, 2024 amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinian children receive drops as part of a polio vaccination campaign, in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on October 14, 2024 amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
TT

Gaza Begins 2nd Round of Polio Vaccine Push

Palestinian children receive drops as part of a polio vaccination campaign, in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on October 14, 2024 amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinian children receive drops as part of a polio vaccination campaign, in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on October 14, 2024 amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

The Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip said it has launched the second round of a polio vaccination campaign in the war-ravaged territory.

It said Monday that a second dose of the vaccine will be administered to children under 10 in the central part of the territory over the next three days before the campaign is expanded to the north and south.

The campaign began last month after the territory registered its first polio case in Gaza in 25 years — a 10-month-old boy, now paralyzed in one leg.

Health workers succeeded in administering the first dose of the vaccine to around 560,000 children despite myriad challenges, including ongoing fighting, the breakdown of law and order and widespread damage to roads and infrastructure.

The World Health Organization said humanitarian pauses to facilitate the campaign last month were largely observed.



Syria's New Rulers Name Foreign Minister

Syrians wave the independence-era flag after Friday Noon prayers at the Umayyad Mosque in the capital Damascus on December 20, 2024. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP)
Syrians wave the independence-era flag after Friday Noon prayers at the Umayyad Mosque in the capital Damascus on December 20, 2024. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP)
TT

Syria's New Rulers Name Foreign Minister

Syrians wave the independence-era flag after Friday Noon prayers at the Umayyad Mosque in the capital Damascus on December 20, 2024. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP)
Syrians wave the independence-era flag after Friday Noon prayers at the Umayyad Mosque in the capital Damascus on December 20, 2024. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP)

Syria's new rulers have appointed a foreign minister, the official Syrian news agency (SANA) said on Saturday, as they seek to build international relations two weeks after Bashar al-Assad was ousted.
The ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step "comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability.”
No details were immediately available about Shibani.
Syria's de facto ruler, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has actively engaged with foreign delegations since assuming power, including hosting the UN's Syria envoy and senior US diplomats.
Sharaa has signaled a willingness to engage diplomatically with international envoys, saying his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development. He has said he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.
The United States, other Western powers and many Syrians were glad to see groups led by Sharaa's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) topple Assad.