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Pakistan train attack: Baloch rebels say they have 214 hostages, police dispute number at 35

Pakistan's interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi, condemned the attack and said the government would not make any concessions to "beasts who fire on innocent passengers".

Pakistan passenger train firing, indian express

The train was on its way from Quetta in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa when it was fired on, railway officials said. (Source: Wikimedia Commons/ Representational)

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has claimed responsibility for hijacking a train in southwest Pakistan, claiming they have taken over 180 passengers hostage, most of them reportedly Pakistani soldiers. In a statement, the militant group, which seeks independence for Balochistan, warned that the hostages would be executed if security forces attempted a rescue operation.

However, in a marginally diminished figure, local police in Balochistan said the militants have taken only 35 passengers hostage and nearly 350 other passengers are believed to be safe.

“Around 350 passengers, including women and children are saved and a relief train will be reaching the area where the train was attacked,” a district senior police officer, Rana Dilawar, told news agency Reuters.

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The Jaffar Express, carrying more than 450 passengers, was en route from Quetta to Peshawar when gunmen blew up the railway tracks, forcing the train to stop inside a tunnel, railway officials told Reuters. The attackers then boarded the train, killing several Pakistani military personnel, according to the separatist group.

The group has issued a 48-hour ultimatum, demanding the release of all Baloch political prisoners and individuals who have been “forcibly disappeared” by the Pakistani government.

However, in a statement emailed to journalists and posted on Telegram, the group said that, “Civilian passengers, particularly women, children, the elderly, and Baloch citizens, have been released safely and given a secure route.”

There was no confirmation of that from Pakistani authorities.

Also Read | Behind train hijacking in Pakistan, history of Baloch insurgency and a spate of recent attacks

Rescue Ops Launched

Security forces have been deployed to the Mushqaf area of Bolan district, where the train was ambushed, while the Balochistan government has declared an emergency, government spokesperson Shahid Rind said.

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“Security forces launched a massive operation,” police officer Rana Dilawar said, adding that helicopters and special forces had been deployed.

Pakistan’s interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi, condemned the attack and said the government would not make any concessions to “beasts who fire on innocent passengers”.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populated province, has long been the site of a separatist insurgency fueled by demands for greater control over its vast mineral resources. The BLA, the most prominent militant group in the region, has repeatedly targeted the Pakistani military and infrastructure, as well as Chinese investments in the province.

(With inputs from agencies)