Over 8,000 police personnel deployed to protect polio teams in Pakistan's Karachi

More than 8,000 police personnel have been deployed in Pakistan's port city, Karachi, to provide security to vaccination teams during a week-long anti-polio campaign, an official said on Monday (November 2, 2026). The campaign, conducted from November 2 to 8, has also begun in other parts of Pakistan, including Balochistan province, where vaccination teams are operating in 31 districts under heightened security measures.

The development comes a day after the National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication confirmed that the new case was reported from Khyber district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi said safeguarding vaccination teams has been heavily prioritised following past security incidents and attacks during immunisation drives.

Additional police personnel have been deployed in sensitive areas, while snap checking and mobile and motorcycle patrols have been increased to strengthen security, he said. Anti-polio campaigns in Pakistan are regularly marred by violence.

Despite global efforts to eradicate the virus, challenges such as safety issues, vaccine hesitancy, and misinformation remain in eliminating it. Vaccination efforts continue to face resistance from community members amid misinformation and religious concerns surrounding the vaccine, including false claims that it causes infertility or impotence.

In September, militants killed two policemen deployed to protect a polio vaccination team in Balochistan's Nushki district. During the 2025 anti-polio campaigns in Karachi, the provincial health department documented approximately 41,000 instances where parents or guardians refused to vaccinate their children.

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