Suspicious Baroque gunmen allegedly fired on Pakistan’s revived Balochistan train on Tuesday, injuring several passengers and taking more than 100 hostages. The Jafar Express, which has nine coaches and about 500 passengers, headed from Quetta to Peshawar in Kyber Pufftankwa and was fired between Gudalar and Pil Koneli in the tunnel, officials said.
Hours after the attack, Balochistan government spokesman Shahid Lind said 80 passengers had been rescued from the hijacked train. “The security forces were able to rescue 80 passengers (43 men, 26 women and 11 children) from the bogey,” Lind said. However, he said about 400 passengers remained on the train and security forces were trapped inside the tunnel as they were engaged in a gunfight with extremists.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed it had derailed it and seized control of the train. The group said it killed six security guards and had more than 100 people in detention, including security guards. However, Pakistani authorities did not comment on the group’s claims.
In a statement, the BLA warned that if Pakistani forces launch an operation, “all hostages will be executed.” This group is banned in Pakistan, the UK and the US. No official data on casualties was available, but security sources said the train driver and several passengers were injured in the shooting.
Lind said rescuers had been dispatched in reports of “severe” shootings on a passenger train bound by Peshawar. A state of emergency was declared at a local hospital. Security sources said the operation would continue until the final removal of terrorists. They said the operation is complicated due to the difficult terrain.
Railway officials confirmed that the train driver was seriously injured and that emergency relief trains were dispatched to assist. Controller Railway Muhammad Kassif said the train, consisting of nine coaches, carries around 500 passengers. “The train was stopped by a man armed with tunnel number 8,” the controller said.
The railway line has 17 tunnels in this area, and train speeds are often slow due to difficult terrain.
The Balochistan government has instructed local governments to take “emergency measures.” A state government statement said an emergency was imposed on SIBI hospitals. Citing security sources, Geo News reported that the train was stopped after a part of the truck exploded by a terrorist who fired fire with the engine and injured the driver.
Security guards who attended the train and fired by attackers added that the terrorists controlled the train in the tunnel. Interior Minister Mohshin Nakvi condemned the incident and said, “The beast that fires on innocent passengers is not worthy of concession.”
