Taliban agree to new polio vaccination across Afghanistan

By RAHIM FAIEZ
Associated Press

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) — U.N. agencies say Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers have agreed to a nationwide polio vaccination campaign for the first time in three years. Since 2018, some 3.3 million Afghan children have gone without vaccinations because door-to-door teams could not reach them, either because of ongoing fighting or because Taliban controlling the areas forbid it. WHO and UNICEF now say they will launch polio inoculation teams nationwide in November and December to reach all 10 million children under 5. The Taliban’s reported reversal appears to be aimed at showing they are ready to cooperate with international agencies after taking power on Aug. 15.