Five Pakistani policemen have died and more than 20 others have been injured today, Monday, in a bomb explosion while on duty guarding an anti-polio vaccination campaign in the northwestern part of the country near the Afghan border. This incident is part of a series of attacks carried out by Islamist militants ahead of general elections scheduled for February 8. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement sent to Reuters. Police official Kashif Zulfiqar stated that the explosion targeted a truck carrying police officers on their way to protect the vaccination campaign in the tribal district of Bajaur.
Militants frequently target teams working on anti-polio vaccination campaigns due to their belief that vaccinations are a Western tool for espionage and that they cause infertility among Muslims. The Pakistani Taliban have been waging a war against the state for years in an effort to overthrow the government and replace it with a strict Islamic regime. The militants have intensified their attacks since they ended a ceasefire with the government last year.
