Karachi, Apr 23 (PTI) Two security personnel guarding a polio vaccination team were shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Wednesday in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province, police said.

The incident took place in the Teeri area of ​​Mastung district, where Levies personnel protecting the polio vaccination team were attacked by masked gunmen, Assistant Commissioner Akram Harifal told the media.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. However, militants frequently target polio vaccinators in Pakistan, terming them un-Islamic and against Sharia.

“One of them died on the spot while the other expired as he was moved to a hospital,” Harifal said.

He said that security for the polio vaccination teams has been increased after the attack.

This is not the first time that security personnel providing security to polio vaccination teams have been killed in Pakistan. In the past, even female health workers have been attacked and killed.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack on the polio vaccination team, the state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

“Terrorists who harm the lives and properties of innocent people are enemies of humanity and will be brought to justice,” he said.

Such incidents cannot deter the government’s commitment to eradicating polio from the country, he said, adding that the anti-polio campaign will continue with determination.

Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind condemned the attack, saying “a thorough investigation into the incident was underway”.

“The provincial government will not allow the polio campaign to be sabotaged under any circumstances,” he added.

He added that the security for polio teams across the province has been increased.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sunday launched this year’s second nationwide anti-polio campaign, running from April 21 to April 27, and vowed to achieve “roaring success” in the effort.

Meanwhile, this year’s second polio case was reported in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, taking the total number of polio cases reported nationwide in 2025 to seven.

According to the Peshawar Health Department, the polio virus has been confirmed in an 11-year-old child from Union Council Manjakot in Torghar district.

Pakistan had reported a total of 74 cases in 2024.

Earlier this week, a polio vaccination team came under attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. One terrorist was killed in an exchange of fire that lasted for about 30 minutes. The remaining terrorists fled the scene.

Militant outfits run campaigns in their areas against anti-polio vaccination drives, threatening the local populace to keep their children below the age of 5 away from polio vaccination. Even educated people in some districts refuse to administer oral polio drops to their children.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only countries in the world where polio remains endemic, according to the World Health Organisation. PTI ZH/CORR AYZ ZH ZH