Pakistan launches new anti-polio drive amid spike in cases

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Heath officials say Pakistan has launched a new nationwide anti-polio drive amid a spike in new cases among children. Monday’s drive is the sixth such campaign this year and it will last for five days, aiming to inoculate children under 5 in high-risk areas. The latest anti-polio drive was launched in the capital, Islamabad, and in the country’s high-risk districts in eastern Punjab and southwestern Baluchistan province. A similar campaign will also be launched in the northwest in the first week of December. Pakistan’s anti-polio campaigns are also supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.