Pakistan: Policeman killed, four injured in attack on polio team in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Islamabad, April 13 (IANS) A police constable was killed and four others injured after law enforcement party heading to provide security for polio teams in Hangu district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday, local media reported.
The incident happened in Thall tehsil of Hangu on the first day of vaccination campaign scheduled for April 13-19. In a statement, the Hangu District police said that unidentified assailants opened fire on a police party, killing a police personnel and injuring four others, Pakistan’s leading daily Dawn reported.
The injured police personnel were rushed to the hospital for the treatment. Following the incident, a search operation was initiated in the area to find the attackers.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where Wild Poliovirus remains endemic. Polio workers in Pakistan have been frequently targetted in attacks, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
In February, a police personnel was killed when unidentified assailants opened fire on a police vaccination team in Chaman district of Pakistan’s Balochistan.
In a similar incident in February, polio teams were attacked in different areas of Pakistan’s Lahore as parents did not allow them to administer polio drops to their children.
According to police, the suspects in Harbanspura area did not allow the polio team to administer drops to their children and then allegedly attacked the health workers, Dawn reported.
According to the FIR, the suspects attacked the polio workers and subsequently, called their accomplices, who also tortured the workers. The police team reached the spot after the polio workers dialled a helpline.
The suspects then attacked the police personnel as well. Later, the police lodged a case against them.
Similarly, the Shahdara police lodged a case against parents of some children for allegedly harassing the female polio workers who were visiting the area for vaccinating the children.
As many as 96 people have been killed in attacks by assailants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since 2012, which included 61 police personnel, 7 health workers and five people, according to official data. Furthermore, 170 people, including 124 police personnel, 28 health workers and 21 people, have been injured in attacks on polio teams. During this period, 32 health workers, three civilians and one police personnel were kidnapped during vaccination campaigns.
–IANS
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