Five police officers deployed for the polio mission died in an explosion in Bajaur

At least 22 police officers were injured in a bomb explosion against a police vehicle in the Bajaur KP district

BAJAUR: At least five police officers were killed in a bomb explosion against a police vehicle in Mamund tehsil in the Bajaur district on Monday, and 22 were injured, Geo News reported.

The police said the police would ensure the safety of the polio vaccination teams. The incident feared further fatalities, it said.

The deceased and injured were brought to the Khar hospital, where an emergency was called, they added. The police said the hospital had requested a blood donation to treat the victims.

The police spokesman said all the victims were police personnel.

Pakistani People’s Party (PPP) senator Sherry Rehman condemned the attack on police officers who were used to protect the anti-polio team in Bajaur.

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She said to X that the PPP is in solidarity with the families of the five employees killed in the explosion.

 “Terrorists not only attacked the police, but also the health of our children. An attack on the safety of the anti-polio team should under no circumstances be tolerated, he is directly related to the health of our children”, she said.

Sherry said the evildoers did not want the polio to be completely eradicated in the country. The terrorists involved in the incident had to be arrested immediately and severely punished, she said.

Acting Prime Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Syed Arshad Hussain Shah, condemned the explosion and expressed his grief over the loss of life. He also expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.

Shah instructed the district administration to immediately provide health facilities to the injured.

 “Such cowardly attacks will not cloud the spirit of the police. The KP police have made numerous sacrifices to protect people’s lives and property”, he said, adding, that the heirs of the martyrs would not be left alone and that they would be helped by all possible means.

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On the 1st. A police officer was killed last December when militants attacked a polio vaccination team, AFP reported. The incident occurred in Malik Din Khel, part of the former tribal border region.

“Two armed men on a motorcycle opened fire on police officers guarding a two-person polio vaccination team”, district police chief Saleem Khan Kulachi told AFP.

Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only two countries where polio remains endemic and vaccination teams are often targeted by militants.

All preparations have been made for the seven-day nationwide anti-polio campaign that begins on Monday (today).

Karachi Commissioner Muhammad Salim Rajput has instructed polio staff, to achieve a 100 percent target for vaccinating children under the age of five with polio drops for at least the next five years. He stressed that if not every child got these drops, there would be a risk of the poliovirus spreading.

Efforts have also been made to convince parents who refuse to vaccinate their children. Extensive planning is carried out and lists of children and their parents as well as reports on obstacles to vaccination are created.

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Those who refused to vaccinate have been identified and local staff are actively involved to ensure that no child is denied the polio drops, the Commissioner said. Meetings were held with community mobilizers from over 450 areas in the East and Middle districts. They were reminded that it is vital to achieve a 100 percent nationwide target for vaccinating children against polio over the next five years. Officials stressed the need for parents to work together to ensure that no child misses the polio vaccination.