BAJAUR: At least two people, including a police personnel, were killed after unidentified gunmen opened fire on a polio vaccination team in Bajaur district on Tuesday.
According to District Police Officer (DPO) Waqas Rafiq, the incident occurred in the Tangi area of Salarzai tehsil, where assailants targeted a polio team during duty.
He said a police official deployed for the team’s security and a passerby sustained critical injuries in the firing and later succumbed to their wounds while being shifted to the hospital.
Following the attack, a heavy contingent of police was dispatched to the area, and raids were launched at various locations to arrest the perpetrators.
Police officials said efforts were under way to apprehend the attackers at the earliest.
Pakistan is one of two countries, along with Afghanistan, where polio remains endemic. Hundreds of security personnel and health workers were killed by miscreants over the past decade.
The attack comes days after the launch of the final polio campaign of the outgoing year 2025, which aimed to immunise more than 45 million children across Pakistan against the debilitating disease.
So far, the country has recorded 30 polio cases, with the highest number of cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) at 19, Federal Minister for Health Syed Mustafa Kamal said last week.
Later, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the terrorist attack on the polio team in Bajaur. He expressed deep sorrow over the martyrdom of the police official and injuries to a civilian, and offered prayers for the forgiveness of the deceased and early recovery of the injured.
The prime minister directed authorities to ensure swift identification of the perpetrators and bring them to justice, saying attacks on those performing polio eradication duties were highly condemnable.
He reiterated that the anti-polio campaign would continue until the disease was completely eliminated from the country.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also condemned the firing on the anti-polio team, expressing grief over the martyrdom of the police official and the death of the passerby. He paid tribute to martyred constable Sajjad Ahmed, saying he attained the great honour of martyrdom while performing his duty and was a hero of the nation.
Naqvi termed the attack on the polio team a heinous act by barbaric elements and said such sacrifices would not go in vain.
Meanwhile, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Suhail Afridi also condemned the attack in Bajaur, calling it an assault on humanity and a national duty. He expressed heartfelt condolences and sympathy to the families of the martyred police official and the deceased civilian.
The chief minister said the sacrifices of polio workers and security personnel would always be remembered by the nation, adding that the tragic incident was extremely regrettable and those involved would be brought to justice. He stressed that the polio campaign would not be allowed to suffer, as it was vital for protecting innocent children.
