Pakistani Taliban claims responsibility for bomb that killed 6 police guarding anti-polio campaign

A roadside bomb exploded Monday near a van carrying police assigned to protect workers in an anti-polio immunization campaign in restive northwestern Pakistan, killing at least six officers and wounding 10 others, officials said. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

The bombing happened in the former Pakistani Taliban stronghold of Mamund in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, police official Kashif Zulfiquar said.

He said some of the wounded officers were in critical condition at a government hospital.

Anti-polio campaigns in Pakistan are regularly marred by violence. Islamic militants often target polio teams and police assigned to protect them, claiming falsely that the vaccination campaigns are a Western conspiracy to sterilize children.

In a statement, the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for Monday’s attack, which came hours after authorities launched the first anti-polio campaign of the new year.

Read more: Fox 5 San Diego