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PESHAWAR: Pakistan reported its 18th polio case this year after a 10-month-old boy tested positive for the virus in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to an official statement on Friday, raising renewed concerns over persistent transmission in areas with low vaccine uptake.

The latest infection, confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health, marks the 11th case in the province, long identified as a high-risk zone for poliovirus transmission due to insecurity, vaccine hesitancy and operational challenges.

“A 10-month-old boy from Union Council Mullazai in District Tank, South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has been confirmed as the eleventh polio case ... this year, bringing the total number of polio cases in Pakistan in 2025 to eighteen,” the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) said in a statement.

“The continued detection of polio cases underscores the persistent threat to children, particularly in areas with low vaccine acceptance,” it added. “It is crucial for communities to understand that poliovirus can re-emerge wherever immunity gaps persist.”

Polio is a highly contagious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis. Health experts stress that the only effective protection is through repeated oral polio vaccine (OPV) doses for every child under five during each campaign, along with the timely completion of routine immunizations.

While Pakistan’s polio program has carried out six vaccination campaigns since September 2024, thousands of children in South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remain unreached due to limited access and logistical barriers in conducting house-to-house immunizations.

The NEOC said two more nationwide and one sub-national campaign are planned between August and December, alongside targeted drives in high-risk districts to stop virus transmission.

Health authorities have also urged parents and caregivers to ensure their children receive every dose, and called on communities to support frontline workers, combat misinformation, and encourage vaccination as a collective responsibility.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday rejected India’s accusation it was behind a militant attack in Kashmir that triggered a war between the two countries this year, calling it a “distortion of facts” and questioning the timing of New Delhi’s claim India had killed the perpetrators ahead of a heated parliamentary session.

In a speech to the Indian parliament this week, Home Minister Amit Shah accused Pakistan of fomenting cross-border militancy and attempting to destabilize peace in Indian-administered Kashmir. He told Indian lawmakers the attack bore “clear signs of Pakistani involvement” and warned of “decisive consequences” if such incidents persisted.

Pakistan and India went to war in May that lasted for four days after an April gun attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir left 26 people dead. Without presenting any evidence, New Delhi accused Islamabad of orchestrating the assault, prompting Islamabad to deny the charge and call for an impartial international probe.

Shah also claimed Indian security forces had killed militants involved in the April attack in “an encounter.”

“Pakistan categorically rejects the baseless assertions and provocative claims made by the Indian leaders during the Lok Sabha [parliamentary] debate on the so-called Operation Sindoor,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan told a weekly press briefing, referring to the title New Delhi gave to its war with Pakistan.

“These statements reflect a dangerous tendency to distort facts, justify aggression, and glorify conflict for domestic consumption,” he added. “The account given by the Indian home minister is replete with fabrications, leading to serious questions about its credibility.”

“Is it a mere coincidence that the alleged perpetrators of the Pahalgam attack were killed at the start of the Lok Sabha debate?” Khan questioned.

He said India had failed to achieve any strategic objectives, highlighting Pakistan’s success in neutralizing Indian fighter jets and military targets.

Khan urged Indian leaders not to mislead their people, but to acknowledge the losses suffered by their armed forces and recognize the role of third parties in facilitating the ceasefire.

“The Indian narrative of an alleged nuclear blackmail by Pakistan is a misleading and self-serving construct and an attempt to veil its own escalatory impulses while shifting blame onto Pakistan,” he said. “India’s continued reliance on disinformation, jingoism and chest-thumping risks destabilizing South Asia.”India and Pakistan have fought four major wars since their independence in 1947, largely driven by their competing claims over the disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir, which they both rule in part but claim in full.