A Levies officer deployed on duty was martyred after unknown assailants opened fire on a polio team in Swat.
According to details, the incident took place in the remote area of Anzar Tangay, Biakan, in Tehsil Matta, Swat, where gunmen attacked a polio vaccination team.
District Police Officer (DPO) Swat, Muhammad Umar, confirmed that Levies officer Abdul Kabir, who was on polio duty, was martyred in the attack. The body has been shifted to Matta Hospital. The DPO added that female members of the polio team remained unharmed during the firing incident. A large police contingent has reached the site, and a search operation against militants has been launched in the area.
According to the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC), the nationwide anti-polio campaign continues successfully on its second day. On the first day of the drive, more than 12.7 million children were vaccinated against polio across the country.
Statistics show that 7.3 million children were vaccinated in Punjab, 2.5 million in Sindh, 1.7 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 0.6 million in Balochistan, 108,000 in Islamabad, 93,000 in Gilgit Baltistan, and 246,000 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The NEOC stated that over 45 million children under the age of five are targeted to be vaccinated during this week’s national campaign.
The statement further emphasized that coordinated and sustained efforts are ongoing to eradicate polio from Pakistan. It also urged parents to welcome polio teams and ensure their children under five receive the vaccine, as polio remains a dangerous disease that can cause lifelong paralysis.
