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Shortly after two polio cases were reported in South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a Sindh health official announced a “zero tolerance” policy for skipping polio drops to “ensure that no child in Sindh remains unprotected.” Online reactions to the comments were overwhelmingly positive and supportive, calling the efforts “commendable.” 

A national Afghan news outlet posted on social media about a polio vaccination campaign planning meeting in Kabul. Responses to the posts were mixed, with some asking about polio vaccine ingredients and alleged “harm done to children” because of polio vaccination. Due to the Taliban’s previous ban, many posts question whether polio vaccines are halal (permissible) or haram (prohibited) for Muslims.

Indonesia’s recent authorization for a clinical trial for a tuberculosis vaccine prompted negative reactions that continued to circulate over the weekend. Several social media and blog posts about the trial falsely alleged that a polio vaccine funded by the Gates Foundation paralyzed either 47,000 or half a million Indian children, disproven myths that have circulated online for years. A popular anti-vaccine account accused the Indonesian health officials of hiding vaccine safety data. Many users opposed vaccines and claimed that Indonesians are being used as “guinea pigs" to test new vaccines.

Video claims—without evidence—that polio drops caused disabilities

In a video spreading online in Iran, a person purporting to be a disability care worker claims that some patients at their center have disabilities caused by polio drops. Health authorities have not confirmed any of the claims in the video. The video has been shared and viewed many times on social media, including on one post that received over 16,000 likes and nearly 700 comments. Although some responses criticized people sharing the video for spreading “ignorance,” others expressed negative views about vaccines. One popular comment encouraged parents not to vaccinate their children, while another claims that vaccines slow children’s development.

A social media user with over 33,000 followers posted several myths about polio vaccines—and vaccines generally—over the last few days. In one post, he falsely claims that polio didn’t exist until polio vaccines were introduced. The post received several supportive responses. In a video post with nearly 7,000 views, he accused Bill Gates of using vaccines to reduce the global population.

Many social media users responded negatively to recent reports that the Gates Foundation will help fund a clinical trial for a new tuberculosis vaccine. Several commenters accused Bill Gates of using Indonesian people as “guinea pigs” and repeated the myth that Gates funded a polio vaccine that paralyzed thousands of Indian children. One commenter questioned an artificial intelligence chatbot about past vaccine trials and whether Gates caused outbreaks in Ethiopia with polio vaccines that had to be destroyed. The AI chatbot correctly explained that the vaccines were not destroyed because they were unsafe, but as a standard disposal process for a specific vaccine that is only used under strict WHO guidelines.

This week, Kenyans online continued to express frustration and distrust about vaccine shortages. In response to reports that the country secured a three-year financing deal with GAVI, one social media user suggested that polio was “debunked as a hoax.”

Pakistan reported positive wastewater samples from 18 districts, along with its eighth polio case this year. Some social media users responded to the news by calling the polio vaccine “poison” and claiming that polio vaccination campaigns are a “big conspiracy” to leave the population barren.