Gaza City, April 13 (RHC)-- Doctors have warned of the risk of polio spreading in Gaza along with other diseases, such as measles and cholera, as Israel continues a total blockade of the Strip.

The fourth round of a polio vaccination campaign was scheduled to take place this week. But because of Israel’s refusal to allow medicine to enter Gaza, the Health Ministry said 600,000 children will not be immunised.

“If the vaccines are not allowed in the campaign will fail, which could lead to the renewed spread of the disease,” Dr Ola al-Najjar, one of the campaign supervisors, told Al Jazeera.

In July, polio was detected in Gaza’s wastewater for the first time in decades. It has since been detected in a 10-month-old baby who was paralysed as a result.

[ SOURCE: REUTERS and ASSOCIATED PRESS ]