Islamabad, Dec 16 (IANS) A policeman was killed in firing by unknown gunmen in Pakistan’s northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police officers said on Monday.
A polio worker was also critically injured when some unknown armed persons attacked a polio vaccination team in Shakarkhel area of Karak district of the province.
The attackers fled the scene after carrying out the attack, and a search operation was underway to arrest the culprits, police said.
Following the incident, a heavy contingent of police reached the area. Security forces cordoned off the area and launched an investigation into the attack, Xinhua news agency reported.
Earlier, the Pakistani government launched a fresh nationwide anti-polio campaign after cases rose to 63 so far in 2024.
As IANS reported at the start of this month, the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) verified the detection of the Wild Poliovirus Type 1 (WPV1) in three children in different areas of the country.
Cases were reported from Dera Ismail Khan, Karachi and southern district of Kashmore, respectively.
The NIH has urged masses to ensure the oral polio vaccine for their children under the age of five during every anti-polio campaign.
The latest mid-December vaccination drive was targetting to reach more than 44 million children.
Pakistan is facing an intense resurgence of WPV1, especially in the restive Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
The two troubled regions have seen rejection of polio vaccination campaigns and even casualties for health workers in the past.
With no end in sign to targeted attacks, it has become almost impossible for polio vaccination campaigns to run smoothly, thus increasing chances of children getting infected.
Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan remain the only two countries in the world where polio is still endemic.
In the past, Pakistan has administered over 300 million doses of the oral vaccine annually. But the disease continues to stay rife in the country.
Many analysts have questioned Pakistan government’s continued failure to handle the spread of polio virus.
–IANS
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