Polio Surges In Pakistan

The Washington Post (1/29, Khan, Noack, Hussain) reports that “after years of decline, polio is surging again in” Pakistan, “dimming hopes that the viral disease – eradicated nearly everywhere else on Earth – can be stamped out here.” The country “reported at least 73 cases last year, up from only one in 2021, and health officials say the virus is now rapidly spreading in the country’s most volatile regions, Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where militant groups are waging expanding insurgencies and, increasingly, targeting vaccinators and their security details.” According to the Post, “Pakistani officials said there were more than two dozen attacks targeting Pakistani polio teams or their security details last year.”