Female polio aid worker killed in NW Pakistan

Peshawar: A woman polio worker was on Wednesday shot dead by suspected militants in northwest Pakistan during an anti-immunisation drive, the latest in a series of attacks targeting the government`s vaccination campaign. Other members of the team managed to escape unhurt in the incident that took place in Swabi District of Khyber-Pakthunkhwa province, which last month witnessed two polio workers being killed by militants, police said. In another attack in the district in January, seven people working for an NGO involved in the vaccination campaign were shot dead. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack as yet but Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan banned polio vaccinations in parts of the tribal belt last year, claiming the drive was a cover for espionage. Health workers in other parts of Pakistan, including Bajaur, Mardan and Karachi have also been targeted for their work in the vaccination campaign. Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria are the only countries where polio is still endemic. PTI