Did CIAs Fake Polio Vaccination Program in Pakistan Help Fuel a Global Health Emergency? By Democracy Now! democracynow.org - The World Health Organization has designated the spread of polio in Asia, Africa and the Middle East a global public health emergency requiring a coordinated international response. Three countries pose the greatest risk of further spreading the paralyzing virus: Pakistan, Cameroon and Syria. In an unusual step, the W.H.O. recommended all residents of those countries, of all ages, to be vaccinated before traveling abroad. The organization also said another seven countries -- Afghanistan, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Iraq, Israel, Nigeria and Somalia -- should encourage all their would-be travelers to get vaccinated. Until recently, polio had been nearly eradicated thanks to a 25-year campaign that vaccinated billions of children. In Pakistan, the increase in polio is being linked to a secret CIA ploy used in the hunt for Osama bin Laden. With the help of a Pakistani doctor, the CIA set up a fake vaccination campaign in the city of Abbottabad in an effort to get DNA from the bin Laden family. The Taliban subsequently announced a ban on immunization efforts and launched a string of deadly attacks on medical workers. We are joined by two guests: Rafia Zakaria, a columnist for DAWN, Pakistans largest English newspaper, who has been covering the rise of polio in Pakistan since the bin Laden raid; and one of Pakistans leading polio experts, Dr. Zulfiqar Bhutta. Watch the full 15-minute segment on Democracy Now! democracynow.org/2014/5/12/did_cias_fake_polio_vaccination_program https://youtube/watch?v=6jPO5XkHmgM
Posted on: Wed, 14 May 2014 12:45:25 +0000
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