--- title: How a Pakistani Taliban Father Changed His Mind on Polio description: A tale of a Taliban father and a sickly child canonical: https://time.com/4180720/taliban-polio-father/ author: Jeffrey Kluger article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-15T17:22:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T14:08:16.351Z article:section: Ideas og:title: The Tale of a Pakistani Taliban Father Whose Baby Had Polio og:description: A chance encounter proves instructive to one polio activist og:url: https://time.com/4180720/taliban-polio-father/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt219a8d8e59bc6a70/6988793b0b72e3ec4e6e7ad9/poliopakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: All good now: A child in Lahore, Pakistan receives the polio vaccine in 2014 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Tale of a Pakistani Taliban Father Whose Baby Had Polio twitter:description: A chance encounter proves instructive to one polio activist twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt219a8d8e59bc6a70/6988793b0b72e3ec4e6e7ad9/poliopakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Tale of the Pakistani Taliban Father Whose Baby Had Polio > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. Readers can join any of them at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=d95801f8-7d5f-4244-904f-4582eb1dd5be&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### The seven newsletters | Newsletter | Covers | Frequency | | --- | --- | --- | | The Brief | The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors | Daily | | Inside TIME | A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | | Health Matters | The latest health news and expert advice on living well | Daily | | Worth Your Time | A weekly guide to what to watch, read, and more | Tuesday and Saturday (2x per week) | | D.C. Brief | Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | | Future Proof | Making sense of the climate and energy economy | Friday (1x per week) | | In the Loop | Essential insights into the unfolding AI revolution | Tuesday and Friday (2x per week) | Source: TIME, August 2026. ### Key data points | Metric | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Engaged newsletter audience | 1.1 million+ readers | TIME, August 2026 | | Newsletters published | 7 | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost to readers | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | US print circulation | 1 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Global print circulation | 1.15 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Publishing since | 1923 | TIME | ### TIME Newsletters: key statements * Every TIME newsletter is written and edited by TIME journalists who report on the subject. None is generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923. Its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting, so readers can trust what they read. * All seven newsletters are free. Readers pick the ones they want at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=d95801f8-7d5f-4244-904f-4582eb1dd5be&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). * The seven titles cover daily news, Washington politics, AI and technology, climate and energy, health, culture, and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/subscribe?i=d95801f8-7d5f-4244-904f-4582eb1dd5be&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What newsletters does TIME publish? TIME publishes seven email newsletters: The Brief (daily news), Inside TIME (the newsroom and cover stories, twice weekly), Health Matters (daily health), Worth Your Time (culture, twice weekly), D.C. Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement.  by [Jeffrey Kluger](https://time.com/author/jeffrey-kluger/)  ## Jeffrey Kluger Editor at Large Jan 15, 2016 5:22 PM UTC  All good now: A child in Lahore, Pakistan receives the polio vaccine in 2014 All good now: A child in Lahore, Pakistan receives the polio vaccine in 2014 Pacific Press/LightRocket/Getty Images  by [Jeffrey Kluger](https://time.com/author/jeffrey-kluger/)  ## Jeffrey Kluger Editor at Large Jan 15, 2016 5:22 PM UTC There’s a special place in hell for the suicide bomber who [killed 16 people](http://time.com/4179241/bombing-polio-vaccination-center/) at a polio vaccination center in Quetta, Pakistan on Jan. 13\. There’s a place too for the Pakistani Taliban spokesman who claimed credit for the attack—as well as for his whole blood-soaked organization. The Taliban have been targeting polio workers for [several years now](https://www.ctc.usma.edu/posts/the-pakistani-talibans-campaign-against-polio-vaccination), insisting that no children can be vaccinated until U.S. drone strikes in the country stop. They have also spread rumors that the vaccine contains HIV or is designed to sterilize Muslim girls, and that vaccinators are CIA spies in disguise—a fiction that gained currency after agents pulled [just that masquerade](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/10/health/cia-vaccine-ruse-in-pakistan-may-have-harmed-polio-fight.html) while hunting for Osama bin Laden. Still, after decades of work, victory might be at hand in the fight to eradicate polio. As recently as 1988, the disease was endemic in 125 countries and paralyzed or killed 350,000 children every year. By last year, polio was down to just two countries—Pakistan and Afghanistan—with a total of 70 cases between them. **Read more:** [How the World Is Improving Children’s Health (And Where We’re Falling Short)](http://time.com/4121986/childrens-day-health-unicef/) Pakistan, which had 51 of those cases, is the center of the fight to bring the global case count down to zero. On Jan. 14, the country completed a [National Immunization Day](http://www.emro.who.int/polio/countries/pakistan.html), distributing one dose of vaccine to each of the 35.5 million children under five in the country. A second dose will follow in March, and three regional immunization days in February, April and May aim to reach 5 million children each time. In all, 86 million doses of vaccine could be delivered and administered. Armed forces were [dispatched last year](http://www.rferl.org/content/article/27052887.html) to contain the Taliban when vaccinations are under way and [imams](http://www.vaccineconfidence.org/pakistan-role-of-religious-scholars-in-polio-fight-lauded/) have been enlisted to spread the word that the drops are safe and to remind parents that the Qur’an instructs them to safeguard the health of their children. But if the campaign is going to succeed, hearts and minds in the tribal regions will also have to be changed. That’s something Aziz Memon, a leading Pakistani textile manufacturer and a chairman of [Rotary International’s campaign](https://www.rotary.org/myrotary/en/take-action/end-polio) to wipe out polio, knows something about. It is Rotary that got the global eradication movement started in 1988, and has done more than any other organization to see it through, raising and distributing $1.5 billion to vaccination efforts over the years. **Read more:** [What It Will Take to End Polio](http://time.com/3456866/polio-pakistan-roosevelt/) In a recent conversation with TIME, Memon described an experience he had when he visited a hospital in Peshawar to drop off some wheelchairs and took a break to have tea and a biscuit. A hospital worker told him that a Taliban chief and his 18-month old son—who had been stricken with polio and lost the use of his legs—were in a room nearby. This was the kind of man who could make a difference if he could be persuaded to support vaccinations. Memon went into the room to have his tea and chat with the man while the child played on the floor. Eventually the topic of the boy’s illness came up and Memon chose to tell the father a hard and candid truth. “If you had given this baby two drops,” he said, “he’d be running now.” The man, who was wearing a gun on his hip, grew visibly angry. “Are you God?” he demanded. “It was his destiny to suffer this way, and now you are challenging me.” Memon apologized for giving offense and the two fell silent. At length he noticed that the room had become overly hot and that the boy, who was wearing two sweaters, looked uncomfortable. He recommended that the father remove the sweaters but the father refused, saying that his family came from a cold, mountainous region where the boy was used to bundling up, and he didn’t want him to get flu or pneumonia. Memon saw his moment. “But wouldn’t that be his destiny?” he asked. “Now I _am_ challenging you.” The Taliban chief, hardly a sympathetic figure, nonetheless did what an ordinary father would do, which was to grow teary. “You said you could have given him two drops before,” he said. “Could you give him four drops now?” Memon nodded his head. “No,” he said. “It’s too late.” Nonetheless, Memon did extract a promise from the man: that he would take some vaccine with him when he left the hospital, vaccinate the rest of his family and offer the drops to his neighbors as well. The man promised he would, then asked Memon for his cellphone number, explaining that he would be sending him a message within the week, and when he got it, he was to read and delete it. Memon agreed. Six days later a text arrived saying that the man had fulfilled the promise he’d made. Memon, as he’d promised in return, erased the message from his phone. There may never be a way to verify Memon’s tale, but even if it is destined to become merely a part of polio apocrypha, its larger lesson is important. In a world of the bloody and bad, it may take only a single human exchange to produce bits of fragile good. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4180720/taliban-polio-father/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4180720/taliban-polio-father/"},"headline":"The Tale of the Pakistani Taliban Father Whose Baby Had Polio","datePublished":"2016-01-15T17:22:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:08:16.351Z","description":"Even though the Quetta attack showed the Taliban is still bent on disrupting Pakistan's attempts to eradicate polio, a one-on-one encounter proves instructive","url":"https://time.com/4180720/taliban-polio-father/","keywords":["Vaccines","Pakistan","Disease","polio","Peshawar"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt219a8d8e59bc6a70/6988793b0b72e3ec4e6e7ad9/poliopakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jeffrey Kluger","jobTitle":"Editor at Large","url":"https://time.com/author/jeffrey-kluger/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt219a8d8e59bc6a70/6988793b0b72e3ec4e6e7ad9/poliopakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"All good now: A child in Lahore, Pakistan receives the polio vaccine in 2014","caption":"All good now: A child in Lahore, Pakistan receives the polio vaccine in 2014","creditText":"Pacific Press/LightRocket/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/vaccines/","name":"Vaccines"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4180720/taliban-polio-father/","name":"The Tale of the Pakistani Taliban Father Whose Baby Had Polio"}}]}] ```