The National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) has confirmed two additional cases of Wild Poliovirus Type 1, raising Pakistan’s total polio cases to 52 in 2024.

According to the National Reference Lab, the latest cases were detected in Dera Ismail Khan’s Tehsil Darazinda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, involving a three-year-old boy and a one-and-a-half-year-old girl. Genetic analysis of the virus is currently underway.

This year, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has recorded five cases, while Balochistan leads with 24, followed by Sindh with 13, and Punjab and Islamabad with one case each.

Authorities are urging intensified polio vaccination efforts, especially in high-risk areas, to curb the virus's spread. The recent surge in cases has raised concerns among international organizations, which have called for emergency measures to address the situation.

Pakistan has assured these organizations of swift action to control the outbreak, with their representatives expected to visit the country later this month to assess the situation.