VIJAY PRASHAD examines why in 2018 Washington started to take an increasingly belligerent stance towards ‘near peer rivals’ – Russa and China – with far-reaching geopolitical effects
Polio in Gaza shames humanity
ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT explain the workings of the virus and the contributory factor of IDF’s deliberate targeting of civic infrastructure

AFTER 25 years without polio, the siege of Gaza has directly resulted in a confirmed case of childhood paralysis, in what could be the start of a polio outbreak.
The British biologist Peter Medawar described a virus as “a piece of bad news wrapped up in protein.” The virus that causes polio provides a perfect example.
When a cell infected with poliovirus dies, it bursts open and can release up to 10,000 individual virus particles. Each contains the poliovirus genome in a protective package which protects the delicate viral genome from being destroyed, allowing it to survive for months in most environments.
More from this author

ROS SITWELL reports from a conference held in light of the closure of the Gender Identity and Development Service for children and young people, which explored what went wrong at the service and the evidence base for care

ROS SITWELL reports from the three-day FiLiA conference in Glasgow

ROS SITWELL reports on a communist-initiated event aimed at building unity amid a revived women’s movement

London conference hears women speak out on the consequences of self-ID in sport
Similar stories

Health workers demanded government stop plans to privatise state-run hospitals

The Palestinian Ministry of Health has confirmed the reemergence of polio in the Gaza Strip as Israel continues to decimate healthcare infrastructure, says ANA VRACAR