PESHAWAR: A police constable was martyred and four others were injured in an attack on a law enforcement party en route to provide security for polio teams in Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday.

The incident took place in Hangu’s Thall tehsil on the first day of a nationwide vaccination campaign taking place from April 13 to 19. The attack is this year’s first on law enforcement personnel deployed for polio teams’ security.

In a statement, the Hangu District Police said “terrorists opened sudden fire on a police party”, resulting in the martyrdom of a policeman and injuries to four others.

The injured police personnel were immediately taken to a hospital.

The police team retaliated immediately, with “reports of two terrorists’ deaths as a result”, Kohat Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Irfan Tariq was quoted as saying.

However, terrorists took their accomplices’ bodies from the scene.

According to the police statement, DIG Tariq commended the personnel’s bravery in “thwarting the terrorists’ attack”. He asserted that the assailants would not be forgiven under any circumstances.

Following the incident, a search operation was launched in the area, with security forces busy tracing the terrorists.

“On the other hand, officials said the ongoing polio campaign in Hangu will continue as usual, and the terrorists cannot demoralise the nation,” Hangu Police said.

KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi condemned the attack and sought a report from the provincial police chief.

In a statement issued by his office, CM Afridi said “targeting pesonnel on national duty is an extremely cowardly act”. He asserted that the terrorists would never succeed in their nefarious aims.

Expressing grief over the deaths of the police constable, the KP CM affirmed the provincial government would provide every possible cooperation to the bereaved family.

The chief minister directed that the injured cops be provided with the best available facilities. He asserted that the KP government and the public were “on the same page in the war against terrorism”.

Attacks during polio campaigns

Polio vaccinators, who go door-to-door to inoculate children, are frequently targeted by militants, esp­e­cially in KP and Balochistan.

In February, a police of­­fi­cer was martyred when armed terrorists opened fire on a polio vaccination team in Balochistan’s Chaman district.

According to officials, the number of violent incidents against polio teams had decreased last year due to foolproof security measures, with four policemen and one civilian killed, and three police officials injured. They also said 17 health workers were kidnapped during vaccination campaigns.

Official data shows that a total of 96 people have been killed by alleged terrorists in KP since 2012, comprising 61 policemen, 27 health workers and five civilians. Also, 170 people, including 124 policemen, 28 health workers and 21 civilians, have been injured in attacks on polio teams.

During this period, 32 health workers, three civilians and one policeman were kidnapped during vaccination campaigns.

Of the people who were subjected to violence in the shape of death, injuries and kidnapping, 283 were men and 18 women, according to an official report.

Pakistan is one of the last two countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan, where polio remains endemic. Challenges such as security issues, vaccine hesitancy, and misinformation have slowed the progress of eradication efforts.