Palestinians displaced by the Israeli air and ground offensive walk next to sewage flowing into the streets of the southern town of Khan Younis in Gaza                  Jehad Alshrafi/AP Photo

New York, August 29 (RHC)-- The Israeli military is contributing to a potentially catastrophic polio outbreak in Gaza by obstructing aid, attacking healthcare infrastructure and damaging water supplies, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has warned.

The New York-based rights group called for immediate humanitarian access to vaccinate hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children in Gaza, noting that polio is entirely preventable but also spreads quickly, particularly among young children.

“If the Israeli government continues to block urgent aid and destroy water and waste management infrastructure, it will facilitate the spread of a disease that has been nearly eradicated globally,” said Julia Bleckner, a senior health and human rights researcher at HRW.

“Israel’s partners should press the government to lift the blockade immediately and ensure unfettered humanitarian access in Gaza to enable the timely distribution of vaccines to contain the unfolding polio outbreak,” she added.