On Saturday, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a police party escorting a two-woman polio team in Tank district, killing one officer.
The two officers were on their way to work when they were ambushed by assailants on a motorcycle. The incident occurred in Tank district’s village Chaddar.
One police officer was critically injured and died as a result of his injuries, while another was taken to the hospital.
Authorities, according to sources, have initiated a search operation to apprehend the attackers.
According to a statement from Taliban spokesman Muhammad Khurasani, the latest strike was claimed by the Taliban, who put the dead toll at two. They claimed that security forces had killed some of their fighters and had broken the one-month cease-fire.
The militants called off a cease-fire mediated by the Afghan Taliban on Friday, accusing the government of breaking the terms of the deal. Noor Wali Mehsud, the group’s head, claimed in an audio message broadcast late Friday that no progress had been made in negotiations with Pakistan’s authorities.
“Appalled to learn of the attack on #polio employees,” PPP Co-Chairman Asif Zardari’s daughter Aseefa Bhutto tweeted in response to the news. It’s outrageous that individuals who labour persistently to eradicate the polio threat are being treated so harshly. The government must bring the criminals to justice and ensure that all polio workers are protected.”
Separately, Lahore Deputy Commissioner Umar Sher Chatha and singer Waris Baig launched an anti-polio drive from Mian Meer Hospital on Saturday. More than 1.8 million youngsters will be given polio drops in Lahore, according to the city’s DC.
It is noteworthy that an anti-polio campaign was inaugurated in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Friday, when KP Chief Secretary Dr Shehzad Khan Bangash gave polio and vitamin A doses to youngsters at Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC).
The campaign is the final one of the year 2021.
