Cop guarding polio vaccination team martyred in Hangu attack

• Govt launches countrywide anti-polio campaign.
• 45m children targetted for inoculation against poliovirus.
• Pakistan reported one case of wild poliovirus this year.

A policeman deployed to protect an anti-polio team was martyred and four others were injured when unidentified assailants opened fire on them in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Hangu on Monday.

Hangu SDPO Mujahid Hussain said that the attack targeted a police van carrying a team of five personnel assigned to provide security to a polio vaccination team in the Chapri Waziran area. All of the policemen sustained bullet wounds in the shooting, but one of them later succumbed to his injuries, he revealed.

The remaining injured personnel were shifted to a medical facility, the SDPO added.

The Pakistan Polio Programme officially commenced its second National Immunisation Days (NIDs) campaign of 2026 today, to make Pakistan a polio-free nation.

The five-day countrywide campaign aims to immunise over 45 million children under five years of age. This effort is seen as a decisive step in the country’s final push to stop poliovirus transmission and achieve eradication by the end of 2025.

NEOC confirmed the first wild polio case of 2026 in a four-year-old child from Bello Union Council, Sujawal district, Sindh, last month.

The case was reported through the polio surveillance network and confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad.

In Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan — the only countries where polio remains endemic — militants have for decades targeted vaccination teams and their security escorts.

Over the past decade, hundreds of police officers and health workers have been killed by militants.

Polio, a highly infectious virus mainly affecting children under five, can result in lifelong paralysis but is easily prevented by the oral administration of a few drops of a vaccine.

The Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) is already analysing the best response to tackle and prevent further transmission.

Despite challenges, eradicating the global public threat of polio in Pakistan and worldwide is within reach, and the PEI continues to intensify its efforts to leave no child behind. Since 1994, thanks to polio vaccines, Pakistan has reduced polio cases by 99.8% – from 20,000 estimated cases in the early 1990s to 31 in 2025.

In 2025, Pakistan’s PEI carried out five nationwide campaigns, in addition to targeted rounds of oral and injectable polio vaccination and integrated activities with the national routine immunisation programme.

While the overall trend shows a decline in poliovirus detections compared to 2024, reflecting the impact of high-quality vaccination campaigns conducted in 2025, virus circulation persists in certain high-risk areas, including districts of Sindh and southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). 

These detections underscore the continued need for robust, targeted efforts to interrupt transmission and consistent vaccination for children.

Polio is a highly contagious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis and death. However, the disease can be prevented thanks to polio vaccines, which are safe and effective and have been safely used in 195 countries, including all Muslim countries.

Polio eradication is a collective responsibility. While Pakistan’s dedicated frontline workers ensure that vaccines reach every child, parents and caregivers play a crucial role by making sure their children receive all recommended doses, including routine immunisations. 

The PEI urges all parents and caregivers to ensure that their children are vaccinated during every campaign to protect them from lifelong disability and/or death.

Communities, religious leaders, and the media also play a vital role in promoting vaccination, countering misinformation, and ensuring that every child in Pakistan is protected. Together, we can achieve a polio-free future for every child, in Pakistan and worldwide.