QUETTA – A female polio worker was shot dead in Chaman area of Pakistan’s Balochistan province on Thursday in a blow to the ongoing drive.
According to police, two men on a motorcycle attacked a polio team in Chaman’s Sultanzai area and martyred a 35-year-old Nasreen.
Besides, another 24-year-old polio vaccinator Rashida was seriously wounded in the attack; she was rushed to a hospital in Quetta for treatment.
Following the brutal attack, the polio campaign was temporary suspended in Sultanzai and law enforcers launched a search operation to avoid any untoward incident in future.
The country-wide anti-polio eradication drive was launched on April 23 and Nasreen’s killing is the second such case in the ongoing week.
Prime Minister’s focal person on polio eradication vowed on Twitter that the ‘terrorists’ behind Nasreen’s death would be arrested.
Sir The Pakistan Polio Programme stands with our valiant Polio Workers & I will ensure that a substantial compensation is awarded. I also assure that we will not rest until the Terrorists are arrested. InshaAllah https://t.co/elJUT4ed9T
— Babar Atta (@babarbinatta) April 25, 2019
According to figures quoted by Al-Jazeera, the death toll during current vaccination drive climbed to three, with at least 95 killed since 2012 in attacks on polio teams.
Earlier on Tuesday, a police officer deployed to secure polio workers was martyred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu city.
Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Imran was on polio duty near a Rural Health Centre in Domel when unidentified assailants opened fire at him.
As Pakistan gears up to eradicate polio, a coordinated campaign against the authorities seems to be at play.
On Monday, the public hospitals of Peshawar brimmed with over 25,000 children brought by their parents for check-ups after fake news was disseminated that children were falling sick after consuming anti-polio drops.
