PESHAWAR: Gunmen on Tuesday killed two women who were members of a polio vaccination team and a police guard in Mansehra, the latest in a spate of deadly attacks on the teams.

Police said unknown gunmen fired at workers Kaneez Nargis and Farah Gul as they gave polio drops to children in Mansehra's area of Dana. Police constable Ishfaq was also killed in the attack.

Senior local police official, Akhtar Hayat, confirmed the incident and casualties.

Pakistan is one of only three countries where polio remains endemic.

Attempts to eradicate it have been badly hit by militant attacks on immunisation teams that have claimed 76 lives since December 2012.

The militants claim the polio vaccination drive is a front for espionage or a conspiracy to sterilise Muslims.

Last year, the number of polio cases recorded in Pakistan soared to 306, the highest in 14 years.

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