Three Polio Workers Abducted in Tank as Attacks on Pakistan’s Vaccination Drive Continue

Three polio vaccination workers have been abducted by gunmen in Tank district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in the latest attack on Pakistan’s campaign to wipe out polio.

Police said on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, that the gunmen took the three workers — Mir Janan, Ikram and Khanzala — from the Sorghar area of Tank district to an undisclosed location. The Tank district administration confirmed the abduction.

What happened

The abduction is the latest in a series of attacks on polio teams in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in just over a week.

A week earlier, on 2 November, four polio workers were abducted at gunpoint in Tank district, and two vaccinators were kidnapped in Lower South Waziristan before being released.

On 3 November, two police officers — Constables Zahoor Khan and Arbai Khan — were shot dead and a third officer, Sepoy Sabir Khan, was injured in Mohmand district. They were heading to join a polio team when gunmen opened fire near the Hashim Kor checkpost.

On 4 November, a polio campaign supervisor, Jalil Khan, was abducted from the Chapri area of Jamrud in Khyber district.

Why it matters

The attacks come during a nationwide polio drive aiming to reach nearly 24 million children in 97 high-risk districts.

Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where wild poliovirus is still endemic — where the virus still spreads naturally. Pakistan has reported nine polio cases so far in 2026, the latest a seven-month-old boy from Bara tehsil in Khyber district. Health officials say the virus found in three cases from Khyber district is genetically linked to strains circulating in Afghanistan, which has reported 50 cases this year.

Attacks on polio workers are not new: at least 47 have been reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since 2020, leaving nine people dead, seven injured and more than 15 abducted, according to the South Asia Terrorism Portal. Militant groups, including the Pakistani Taliban, have regularly targeted vaccination teams, falsely claiming that polio campaigns are part of a Western plot.

Every attack makes the job of the vaccinators harder — and every missed child leaves a gap the virus can use.

What happens next

Police have not said who was behind today’s abduction or where the three workers were taken. The incident is likely to raise fresh questions about the security given to vaccination teams working in the province’s most dangerous districts.

Sources

• The Hindu, “Three polio workers abducted during vaccination campaign in northwestern Pakistan”, 10 November 2026: https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/three-polio-workers-abducted-during-vaccination-campaign-in-northwestern-pakistan/article71685191.ece
• The Week (PTI), “Three polio workers abducted during vaccination campaign in NW Pakistan”, 10 November 2026: https://www.theweek.in/wire-updates/international/2026/11/10/three-polio-workers-abducted-during-vaccination-campaign-in-nw-pakistan.html
• Dawn, “Two cops on polio duty martyred”, 4 November 2026: https://www.dawn.com/news/2041951/two-cops-on-polio-duty-martyred
• The Express Tribune, “Polio team supervisor abducted during vaccination drive in K-P’s Jamrud”, 4 November 2026: https://tribune.com.pk/story/2638593/polio-team-supervisor-abducted-during-vaccination-drive-in-k-ps-jamrud
• Telangana Today (IANS), “Pakistan reports ninth polio case from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa”, 6 November 2026: https://telanganatoday.com/pakistan-reports-ninth-polio-case-from-khyber-pakhtunkhwa

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.