Pakistani Taliban Bomb Kills Six Police Officers Guarding Polio Vaccination Campaign

The attack in northwestern Pakistan has led to the suspension of the vaccination campaign in the district, amid a surge in violent incidents in the country.

A roadside bomb exploded near a van carrying police assigned to protect workers in an anti-polio immunization campaign in northwestern Pakistan, killing six officers and wounding 27 others.
The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred in the former Taliban stronghold of Mamund in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.
The attack has led to the suspension of the vaccination campaign in the district, although it will continue in other parts of the country.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where polio remains endemic, with six new cases detected in Pakistan in 2023.
The attack comes amid a surge in violent incidents in Pakistan, with more than 600 violent attacks taking place in the country in 2023, killing more than 950 people.