Policeman guarding polio workers killed in Peshawar blast
The explosion occurred near MCA School in Daudzai area.
PESHAWAR (Dunya News) – A policeman guarding polio workers on the second day of a vaccination campaign was killed in a roadside blast in Peshawar today (Tuesday).
The explosion occurred near MCA School in Daudzai area, injuring two policemen. They were shifted to Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) where one of them identified as Nazir succumbed to his injuries.
"The bomb was planted near roadside," a police officer said. It is believed that the apparent target were the anti-polio workers.
Police immediately cordoned off the area and launched a search operation after the blast.
A BDS official defused a bomb in Daudzai area, watch video:
Superintendent of Police (SP) Furqan told media that two suspects have been arrested from the blast site.
THREAT TO POLIO WORKERS
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, polio teams launched a door to door campaign on Monday to administer polio vaccine drops to the children in high risk districts including, Peshawar, Charsadda, Nowshera, Mardan, Swabi, Swat, Kohat, Karak, Hangu, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Tank and Dera Ismail Khan.
Pakistan is one of only two countries where polio, a crippling childhood disease, remains endemic. Attempts to eradicate it have been badly hit by militant attacks on immunisation teams that have claimed dozens of lives since December 2012.
The most recent attack came in January this year, a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a polio vaccination centre in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta, killing at least 15 people.
