ISLAMABAD – An explosion targeting a police van while the police were ontheir way to carry out their duties in the anti-polio campaign, martyred apoliceman and injured two others in Kalachi, Dera Ismail Khan, on Tuesday,according to local police.
Notably, Vaccinators and police teams have previously been targeted in thecountry, where rumors have persisted about immunization programs beingharmful or a cover for foreign interests.
But a shift to recruiting local workers for the door-to-door campaigns –people known and trusted in their communities and with the right languageskills and access – had led to better acceptance.
Pakistan has seen a 96% reduction in polio cases since 2014. It is one ofthree countries that has yet to eliminate the disease, along withAfghanistan and Nigeria.
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Earlier on Monday, a suicide bomb attack near a religious rally in thePakistani city of Quetta has killed at least seven people and wounded 25others, according to officials.
