A campaign to vaccinate about 40,000 children under the age of three began on Sunday, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

The drive aims to protect against preventable diseases such as measles, polio and meningitis, after months of war disrupted routine immunisations.

Physician Mahmoud Saleh told The Associated Press that the measures would give priority to children who haven’t received full doses.

“We are administering these vaccines according to the schedule prepared for each child. There was a very high turnout on the first day of the vaccination campaign,” he said.

The first round of the campaign will take place from 9 to 18 November.

Fedaa Al-Bardini, a displaced mother, was determined for her baby to get vaccinated.

“I came here to give my son his first month vaccination out of fear (for his health) because we live in tents, our health situation is nonexistent, and we are surrounded by sewage,” she said.