Jamrud Polio Supervisor Abducted, Search On
A Jamrud polio supervisor was abducted by unidentified armed men during the ongoing polio vaccination campaign in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. District Police Officer (DPO) Waqar Ahmad said the supervisor, identified as Jalil Khan, was picked up from the Chapri area of Jamrud on Wednesday.
Police have launched recovery efforts. A heavy contingent of police was dispatched to the area after the incident, and blockades were set up on key routes in an effort to recover the abducted supervisor, the DPO said. The armed men took Khan to an undisclosed location, according to police.
Jamrud polio supervisor: what happened
The abduction took place during a seven-day polio vaccination campaign. Khan supervised a campaign team working in the Chapri area when armed men took him away. Police have not yet reported any claim of responsibility, and they have not said whether any demand has been made.
The incident is the latest in a worrying week for polio workers in the province. A day earlier, two policemen were killed and another was injured when unidentified armed men attacked a polio vaccination team in Mohmand district. One attacker was also injured in that incident, Tribune reported.
Earlier in the week, four polio workers were abducted by unidentified armed men in Tank district. That incident took place in the village of Jious, in the Sheikh Attar union council, where gunmen subjected the team to gunfire before taking all four workers to an undisclosed location.
In a separate incident, two members of a polio vaccination team were abducted in the Azam Warsak area of Lower South Waziristan. Sources said armed men affiliated with the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were allegedly involved in that kidnapping. Both workers were later released.
A pattern across the campaign week
Read together, the districts tell a grim story. Mohmand saw a deadly attack on a team, Tank saw four workers taken at gunpoint, and Lower South Waziristan saw two workers taken and later freed. Jamrud now adds a supervisor taken from his team. Feature Pakistan has already covered two of those incidents this week: the Mohmand attack, in Mohmand polio team incident, and the Tank abduction, in Four polio workers abducted in Tank.
The campaign itself is large. A special anti-polio campaign launched on November 2 covers 97 selected districts across the country, according to the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) for Polio Eradication. It will continue until November 8. Teams in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa face the sharpest risks, but the drive depends on workers reaching every household in those districts.
Why Khyber district matters in the polio fight
NEOC also confirmed Pakistan’s seventh polio case of the year, reported from Khyber district. The affected child was a 13-month-old girl from Jan Baz Union Council in Bara tehsil. This was the second polio case reported from Khyber district this year, and the sixth from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
That detail explains why the Jamrud abduction matters beyond one man’s safety. Khyber district still records new polio cases, which means vaccination teams must keep working there even when the security risks rise. If teams cannot move safely, children in the same district miss doses, and the virus keeps a foothold.
Balochistan shows the scale of the national effort, with its current drive targeting 2.2 million children, as reported in Balochistan polio drive targets 2.2 million children. The national campaign can only succeed if workers in every province can do their rounds without fear.
What happens next
Police recovery efforts in Jamrud are now the immediate priority. Blockades on key routes suggest police believe the abductors may still be moving within the area, or may try to cross into neighbouring districts. The DPO has not given a timeline for recovery, and no further official update has been issued yet.
The campaign runs until November 8, so teams in Jamrud and nearby districts must decide how to proceed in the coming days. Security for polio teams has long relied on police escorts, and the Mohmand attack showed that even escorted teams can come under fire. For now, a supervisor is missing, police are searching, and the safe return of Jalil Khan is the first test of the response.
Frequently asked questions
Who was abducted in Jamrud?
Polio campaign team supervisor Jalil Khan was abducted by unidentified armed men from the Chapri area of Jamrud, according to District Police Officer Waqar Ahmad.
What are police doing to recover the Jamrud polio supervisor?
A heavy police contingent was dispatched to the area, and blockades were set up on key routes in an effort to recover him.
What happened to polio teams in Mohmand and Tank this week?
Two policemen were killed and one injured in an attack on a polio team in Mohmand, while four polio workers were abducted at gunpoint in Tank district.
How long does the current polio campaign run?
The special anti-polio campaign launched on November 2 in 97 selected districts across Pakistan and will continue until November 8.
How many polio cases has Pakistan reported this year?
NEOC confirmed Pakistan’s seventh polio case of the year, a 13-month-old girl from Khyber district. It was the second case from Khyber district and the sixth from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Were the Lower South Waziristan polio workers released?
Yes. Two polio team members abducted in the Azam Warsak area were later released, after sources alleged TTP-affiliated men were involved.
