Two policemen tasked to safeguard the polio vaccination team in Tank, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have been killed by unidentified persons, KP Police Department has said.
The KP Police stated on its official Twitter account that Constable Pir Rehman and Nisar were killed in the attack. The statement has also said that the two martyred policemen were appointed on the security duty of polio team when they were attacked in the vicinity of Gomal Police Station in District Tank.
National anti-polio campaign has been started since Monday in Karachi, Hyderabad, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, North Waziristan, South Waziristan, Dera Ismail Khan and Tank.
During the current year, at least 14 polio cases have been reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has strongly condemned the attack on policemen appointed for security of polio teams. Shehbaz Sharif also praised the services and sacrifices of police force for providing security to the polio teams during the polio vaccination campaigns.
Shehbaz Sharif said, “We salute our martyrs,” adding that against terrorism, police had made great sacrifices.
The problem of attacks on polio teams continues. Pakistan is one of only two countries in the world where polio is considered endemic. In addition to the killing of the security personnel accompanying polio teams, there have also been refusals by parents to allow their children to be vaccinated sometimes in the wake of fake news.
