Govt has launched polio vaccination campaign aiming to inoculate around 44 million children
Shamim Shahid
PESHAWAR: The first day of the nationwide anti-polio campaign was marred by violence after unknown gunmen opened fire at polio workers killing two in separate attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday.
A policeman, providing security to a polio vaccination team, was martyred in the Shakar Khel area of Banda Daud Shah tehsil in Karak after being shot by the armed assailants.
Whereas one polio worker was also injured in the attack, the police said.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a polio worker was gunned down in Bannu’s Kala Khel Masti Khan area while he was on his way to work.
Noting that the suspects fled after the incident, the police said that the victim was involved in an old enmity and that further investigation was underway.
Condemning the Karak incident, President Asif Ali Zardari expressed sorrow over the policeman’s martyrdom.
Terming the terrorists as enemies of the country and its future, President Zardari said that they didn’t wish to see the people of Pakistan healthy and prosperous.
Furthermore, the president also requested the masses to take part in the polio vaccination campaign.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, while issuing directions for immediate provision of medical assistance to the injured, expressed concern about the attack on polio workers who were working for the eradication of the crippling disease.
Noting that such incidents cannot demoralise them, the premier said the government would use all its resources to curb poliovirus and protect health workers.
Reacting to the development, KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi termed the attack on the polio team in Karak “extremely regrettable” and expressed grief on the martyrdom of the policeman.
Seeking a report on the attack, the governor further issued directions for the provision of all possible treatment facilities to the wounded polio worker.
Taking to social media platform X, formerly Twitter, First Lady and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari condemned the attacks targeting polio workers.
