PESHAWAR: A polio worker was shot dead by unknown gunmen in the Ghundi area of Khyber Agency’s Jamrud Tehsil on Saturday.
Jehangir Azam Wazir, the assistant political agent of the area, confirmed the incident, saying unknown gunmen opened fire on a polio worker who was then shifted to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
According to some official sources, after opening fire on the polio worker gunmen threw a pamphlet next to him, with a warning that all those who were part of any polio vaccination campaign or found working for any non-governmental organisation would be targeted in a similar manner.
On Wednesday, Ansarul Mujahideen, a little-known militant group affiliated with the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), threatened to attack Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan after he started an anti-polio campaign by administering polio drops to children in a government hospital in the town of Akora Khattak in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Imran Khan also urged the Taliban not to attack polio workers and let the government run a vaccination campaign to save children from lifelong disabilities.
Pakistan is one of only three countries in the world where the polio virus is still endemic, but efforts to stamp out the crippling disease have been hit by repeated attacks on health teams.
