Pakistan: Polio Worker Kidnapped In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa During Vaccination Campaign

(MENAFN- IANS) Islamabad, Nov 5 (IANS) A polio campaign team supervisor was kidnapped by unidentified assailants from Jamrud in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province during the ongoing polio vaccination campaign, local media reported on Thursday.

District Police Officer (DPO) Waqar Ahmad said that armed assailants kidnapped the polio campaign team supervisor, identified as Jalil Khan, and took him to an undisclosed place on Wednesday, leading Pakistani daily 'The Express Tribune' reported. Following the incident, a heavy contingent of police was deployed in the area, and blockades set up to find Khan.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two nations in the world where wild poliovirus remains endemic. Polio workers in Pakistan have been frequently targetted in attacks, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

On Tuesday, two police personnel were killed, and another was injured after unidentified assailants opened fire on them when they were heading to join a polio team for security duty during the vaccination campaign in Mohmand district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Headquarters Deputy Superintendent of Police Liaquat Ali said that the attack took place near the Hashim Kor police checkpost in Pindiali tehsil of Mohmand, Pakistan's 'Dawn' newspaper reported.

On Monday, four polio workers were kidnapped by unidentified assailants after being subjected to gunfire in the Tank district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

As per the details, four polio workers were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in Tank and taken to an undisclosed place. Police have launched a probe into the incident, The Express Tribune reported.

In a separate incident, two polio workers were abducted by gunmen in the Azam Warsak area in Lower South Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and subsequently released.

Gunmen linked to the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were allegedly responsible for the kidnapping of two members of a polio vaccination team. However, both of them were later released, The Express Tribune reported.

The attack on members of the polio vaccination team comes while Pakistan continues to report a surge in polio cases.

Pakistan reported the eighth polio case in 2026 from the Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on November 1, the National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication (NEOC) said.

An official of the polio programme said that the affected child is a 13-month-old girl belonging to Bara tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Dawn reported. He said that this case was the second one from Khyber district and the sixth from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

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