Rebels hijack train in Pakistan, take 100 captive

Suspected Baloch gunmen opened fire at a train in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan on Tuesday, injuring several passengers, and claimed to have taken over 100 people hostage. Security officials said they had killed 13 militants.

The Jaffar Express, with around 500 passengers on board in nine coaches, was on its way from Quetta to Peshawar in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa when it was fired upon between Gudalaar and Piru Koneri in a tunnel, according to the officials.

Hours after the attack, Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind said 80 passengers had been rescued from the hijacked train.

“The security forces have managed to rescue 80 passengers — 43 men, 26 women and 11 children — from a bogie,” Rind said.

However, around 400 passengers remained on the train, still trapped inside the tunnel as the security forces engaged in a gun battle with the militants, he said.

The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed it seized control of the train by derailing it. The group said it had killed six security personnel and taken over 100 people in custody, including security personnel.

However, the Pakistani authorities did not comment on the group’s claim.

In a statement, the BLA warned that if the Pakistan military launched an operation, “all hostages will be executed”. The group is banned in Pakistan, the UK and the US.

Official data on casualties was not available, but security sources said the train driver and several passengers were injured in the gunfire.

Rind said rescue teams had been dispatched amid reports of “intense” firing at the Peshawar-bound passenger train.

An emergency was declared at the local hospitals.

The sources said the operation would continue till the elimination of the last terrorist. They said the operation was complicated due to the difficult terrain.

Railway officials confirmed that the train driver sustained serious injuries, and an emergency relief train had been dispatched to assist.

Controller (Railways) Muhammad Kashif said the train, comprising nine coaches, had around 500 passengers on board.

Citing sources, Geo News reported that the train was stopped after a portion of the track was blown up by the terrorists, who opened fire on the engine, injuring the driver.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the incident, saying: “The beasts who fire on innocent passengers do not deserve any concessions.”

Rana Muhammad Dilawar, the district police officer in the affected area, said the security forces had surrounded the site, but there were reports that militants had taken some women and children hostage. He said that four or five government officials were also on board the train.

Balochistan, bordering Iran and Afghanistan, is home to a long-running violent insurgency. PTI