Syria Confirms Third Polio Case in Deir Ezzor as Response Reaches Over 34,000 Children
Syrian health authorities have confirmed a third case of poliomyelitis in the Mayadin district of Deir Ezzor Governorate in eastern Syria, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported on November 13, citing Ministry of Health officials, prompting an expansion of emergency vaccination drives, disease surveillance and public awareness campaigns. The Ministry of Health, working with the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, urged parents to ensure children receive all scheduled routine polio vaccines as well as supplementary doses in the emergency campaigns.
The cluster first came to public attention on November 8, when Syria's Health Minister announced two confirmed polio cases at a briefing with WHO and UNICEF officials. A joint statement by the Ministry of Health, WHO and UNICEF on November 9 verified that both children, aged between six and 13 months, had developed paralysis caused by vaccine-derived poliovirus type 1 (VDPV1). Clinical details of the third child have not yet been publicly released, and independent international verification remains pending.
According to the joint statement, the initial response reached more than 34,000 children under the age of five across affected parts of Deir Ezzor. On November 13, WHO's Polio International Health Regulations Emergency Committee reported 155 circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus cases across 20 countries as of September 15, 2026, comprising 118 type 2, 24 type 1 and 13 type 3 cases.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图中是叙利亚代尔祖尔幼发拉底河畔的 Cham Palace 酒店露台，本次脊灰病例确认于代尔祖尔省马亚丁地区。Wikimedia Commons, Gianfranco Gazzetti, CC BY-SA 4.0
