Armed assailants assassinate law enforcement officer guarding polio vaccination team in southwestern Pakistan region.
AP News: Gunmen Kill Polio Officer in Pakistan, Thwarting Vaccination Campaign
QUETTA, Pakistan - In southwestern Pakistan, gunmen assassinated a police officer responsible for protecting polio workers on Tuesday, local authorities confirmed. The attack took place in Noshki, a district within Balochistan province.
According to a local police official, Mohammad Hassan, the assault unfolded as the female health workers distributed oral polio vaccine drops inside a house. As they carried out their work, assailants opened fire on the officer, Abdul Waheed, who later died at the hospital. Remarkably, the polio workers managed to escape unharmed.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, it is suspected that separatist groups and the Pakistani Taliban, known for their increased aggression against security forces and civilians, may be responsible.
In statements released separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi denounced the attack and pledged to take decisive action against the attackers. The shooting occurred just a day after Pakistan initiated a nationwide campaign aimed at vaccinating 45 million children against polio.
The World Health Organization reports that Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the two countries where the wild polio virus has yet to be eliminated. Ongoing polio outbreaks linked to the oral vaccine are present in 10 other countries, primarily in Africa.
Pakistan has reported 10 polio cases this year despite the launch of immunization drives. Despite the recurring cases, the South Asian country saw a significant decrease in polio cases last year, reporting only one case compared to 74 in 2021.
Since the 1990s, more than 200 polio workers and the police assigned to protect them have been killed in attacks. The volatile region of Balochistan has been a hotspot for these attacks, with police officers guarding polio teams frequently targeted.
Separatist groups, particularly the Balochistan Liberation Army, and Islamist militant groups, such as the Pakistani Taliban, are believed to be behind the violence. Their attacks not only threaten the safety of polio workers and security personnel but also pose a major obstacle to efforts to eradicate polio, one of the last remaining endemic diseases in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
- Seattle's top health-and-wellness startup, focused on scientific advancements in vaccines, has announced a new project aimed at providing polio vaccines to regions like southwestern Pakistan, where such campaigns face challenges from crime-and-justice elements.
- Despite the increased focus on sports and technology in Seattle schools, local education administrators are also promoting general-news programs to educate students about global issues, such as the recent assassination of a polio officer in Pakistan and the ongoing challenges to eradicate polio worldwide.
- In a surprising turn of events, the Seattle-based tech giant is planning to develop a comprehensive digital tracking system to monitor and secure places where health-and-wellness workers, particularly those conducting polio vaccination campaigns, will be operating, with a focus on high-risk areas such as Quetta in Pakistan.
