Islamic group slams anti-polio vaccine fatwas
Some areas of Muslim-majority countries still remain affected by the disease, which is easily preventable through a vaccine
An Islamic group met Wednesday to quash fatwas (religious edicts) ruling that polio vaccines cause infertility, Al Arabiya News Channel reported
“The whole world rejects such fatwas that polio vaccines cause infertility,” Abbas Chouman, a senior official at Cairo’s al-Azhar University - regarded as the highest seat of learning of Sunni Islam - told Al Arabiya News Channel during the two-day meeting by the Islamic Advisory Group (IAG) in the Saudi city of Jeddah.
Strict
The strict fatwas banning vaccines against polio were observed in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Somalia.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), polio cases have decreased by over 99 percent since 1988, from an estimated 350,000 cases in more than 125 endemic countries then, to 223 reported cases in 2012.
However, in parts of Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan, the disease remains widespread.
In late 2013, WHO and UNICEF launched a polio vaccination campaign for 23 million children in the Middle East after dozens of cases were discovered in conflict-ridden Syria.
The strain of the disease detected in Syria is related to a strain that originated in Pakistan and has also been found in sewage samples in Egypt, Israel and the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
No cure
Polio, which has no cure, mainly affects children under five years of age. However, a polio vaccine administered multiple times can prevent a child from contracting the disease for life.
Ayad Madani, an IAG member, said the group is committed to making countries polio-free.
“We renewed our commitment to get rid of polio on an international level,” Madani, who is also the Secretary General of the 57-member Organization of Islamic cooperation (OIC), said.
“We are also determined to offer the grantees needed [to curb the disease] including the provision of polio vaccine,” he added.
Alaa al-Alwan, WHO’s eastern Mediterranean director, said the international agency is working with governments, local organizations and religious scholars in countries affected by polio to get rid of the disease.
Also Read
-
Pakistani polio strain threatens global campaign
Pakistan’s beleaguered battle to eradicate polio is threatening a global, multi-billion-dollar campaign to wipe out the disease Features -
Pakistan region to extend polio drive despite threats
Pakistan is one of three countries in the world where polio remains endemic, along with Afghanistan and Nigeria Asia -
U.N. seeks $6.5 billion for Syria crisis in 2014
U.N. agencies aim to provide food, clean drinking water, shelter, education, health services and polio vaccines to Syrians Middle East -
WHO launches polio vaccinations for Mideast children
The campaign will be largest-ever immunization response in the region Middle East -
Syrian activists: WHO polio vaccines ‘rarely reach liberated areas’
Polio is preventable if children receive vaccines; however, the contagious disease is incurable Middle East -
Children in Syria and Pakistan receive polio vaccinations
Polio mainly affects children under five and cannot be cured, only prevented Perspective
