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Terror attacks on polio vaccination workers and their guards in Pakistan are hindering the government's efforts to eradicate poliovirus which still exists in the country today.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says polio remains endemic in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria, but has been almost wiped out around the world.
Despite efforts by the government and other stakeholders, however, the number of polio cases in Pakistan has increased by four times in the year 2014, compared to the corresponding period a year earlier.
As many as 260 cases of polio were reported before November this year in Pakistan, Global Polio Eradication Initiative, a public-private enterprise led by the government and the WHO, said. A total of 93 cases were reported last year, the enterprise confirmed.
Security is being cited as one of the major causes for an increase in cases in Pakistan and the Taliban and other militants are being blamed for obstructing health workers from administering vaccinations.
A Pakistani doctor, Shakil Afridi, who helped the CIA reach Osama bin Laden through a fake vaccination drive, also proved to be a serious blow to the anti-polio campaign, as the Taliban have banned vaccinations under the pretext that it could be used for spying. Afridi is now facing trial and Pakistan has rejected the repeated calls from the U.S. to release him.
Most of the cases were registered in the militant-infested tribal regions, particularly Waziristan, and the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Taliban had announced a ban on polio vaccination in the Waziristan tribal area after Osama's death in a unilateral military decision in May 2001. The launch of a military offensive against the Taliban in North Waziristan in June has now raised hopes to control the polio virus in the region.
The brutal terror attack on a polio vaccination team in the southwestern Quetta city on Wednesday killed four polio workers, including three women. Three other workers were injured in the attack on the nine-member team of female workers. A Taliban splinter group Jundullah claimed responsibility for the attack.
The WHO restricted its staff and contractors' exposure in Pakistan over security situation, hours after the Quetta attack, said Dr. Michel Thieren, the WHO's representative in Pakistan.
The health workers involved in the vaccination initially boycotted the campaign. They later agreed to continue their vaccination drives, however, after the authorities assured them security coverage.
Just days before the Quetta attack, another Taliban splinter group TTP Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed responsibility for an attack on a polio team in the northwestern Charsadda district, which had injured at least one worker.
Dozens of polio workers and their guards have been killed in a series of attacks across the country, including the port city of Karachi.
Pakistan's top religious scholars have issued several edicts in support of the polio vaccinations, however, the terror attacks targeting polio teams have created panic among the campaigners. The militants have also spread rumors that the polio drops are mixed with substances prohibited by Islam.
It seems that with these actions, the militant groups want to undermine efforts by the government and the WHO to fight polio.
In May this year, the WHO recommended some travel measures for Pakistan. These were mandatory measures for all people traveling from Pakistan and also for those coming to Pakistan and staying for more than two weeks.
Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain urged the international community this month to be sympathetic towards the country in its efforts to eradicate polio, rather than imposing more sanctions. He also "blamed wars in Afghanistan for the spread of the crippling disease in Pakistan."
As part of the government's efforts to eradicate polio, a Prime Minister's Focus Group for Polio Emergency has been instituted to hold monthly meetings to assess the performance of the polio eradication program, officials said.
