Gunmen Are Targeting Polio Vaccination Teams
Children, health care workers, and polio vaccination team guards have been killed in recent years as they work to eradicate polio.
Most folks knew it would be hard to finally eradicate polio. I doubt that they had any idea part of the problem would be polio vaccination teams being gunned down though!
Tragically, a policeman that was protecting a polio vaccination team was recently gunned down in Balochistan’s Noshki district.
“Since the 1990s, more than 200 polio workers and the police assigned to protect them have been killed in attacks.”
Gunmen kill police officer assigned to protect polio workers in southwestern Pakistan
An incident that is likely much more common than you might think.
Hundreds of people have died in Pakistan and Afghanistan working to get kids vaccinated and protected!
“According to published reports, most of the attacks on polio workers were committed by The Taliban and the 2021 crisis in Afghanistan and the Taliban’s take over will probably lead to more targeted killings of polio vaccine teams.”
The History and Current Killings of Polio Vaccinators in Pakistan: A Need for Targeted Surveillance Strategy
In addition to the policemen guarding the vaccination teams, among those killed have been health care workers and children!
Teams working in the last two countries in the world that still have cases of wild polio.
Teams working to help us finally eradicate polio.
References
Gunmen kill policeman protecting polio team in Noshki district https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2025/05/27/gunmen-kill-policeman-protecting-polio-team-in-noshki-district/
Wahid B, Kumari B, Saifullah KM, Idrees M. The History and Current Killings of Polio Vaccinators in Pakistan: A Need for Targeted Surveillance Strategy. Asia Pac J Public Health. 2023 Mar;35(2-3):183-188. doi: 10.1177/10105395231158866. Epub 2023 Mar 1. PMID: 36856226; PMCID: PMC10185917.
Five children among nine killed in attack on Pakistan polio vaccine drive https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/1/five-children-among-seven-killed-in-attack-on-pakistan-polio-vaccine-drive
Attacks on Pakistan polio teams kill vaccinator, 2 police officers https://www.voanews.com/a/attacks-on-pakistan-polio-teams-kill-vaccinator-2-police-officers-/7903073.html
In memoriam: VaccinesWork remembers health care workers killed in 2024 https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/memoriam-vaccineswork-remembers-health-care-workers-killed-2024
Unfortunately, attacks on vaccination teams have happened before in many places, but it should not be forgotten that part of the strategy used to locate Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan involved a fake health worker who went door to door offering the polio vaccine. Justification for this can be debated ad nauseam, but it certainly tainted Pakistan's vaccination program.
@MeidasTouch Network