A polio case has been reported in Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after a gap of around six and a half years, bringing the total number of polio cases reported in Pakistan this year to six.

The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication in Islamabad has confirmed Pakistan’s sixth polio case of the year from Khyber district.

According to the Health Department, the affected child is a seven-year-old boy from Ghundi-A Union Council in Jamrud tehsil. The case was reported at an active surveillance site in Jamrud after the child developed symptoms of left facial palsy. His samples were then sent to the laboratory for further testing.

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Officials said this is the first polio case reported in Khyber district in around six and a half years. Khyber is an important part of the Peshawar block and is considered one of the major reservoirs of poliovirus in Pakistan.

A total of six polio cases have been reported in Pakistan this year, including five from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one from Sindh.

The 2026 cases include one from Sujawal district in Sindh, three from Bannu, one from Waziristan and one from Khyber district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.