Militants Hijack Train, Take Dozens Of Hostages In Restive Pakistan Region

By RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal March 11, 2025

Militants hijacked a packed train in a tunnel in southwestern Pakistan, taking dozens of hostages as they battled with security forces, leaving several dead.

The Jaffar Express, with more than 400 passengers on board, was on its way from Quetta, the capital of the restive Balochistan Province to Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region, when it came under "intense gunfire," Balochistan government spokesman Shahid Rind said in a statement.

It was unclear how many of the passengers were still being held late on March 11, but the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group, claimed responsibility.

It added that it had taken control of the train with more than 100 passengers hostage, including an unknown number of Pakistani security and intelligence officers.

"The affected train is still on the spot and the armed men are holding passengers," senior district police officer Rana Dilawar said.

Rind said security forces were deployed to the scene in the Bolan district, and an emergency situation had been declared in local hospitals.

A passenger on board the train told RFE/RL via telephone that the security forces had launched ground and air operations against the armed group, while the militants were using weapons and rockets in response.

Muhammad Kashif, a spokesman for Balochistan regional railways department told RFE/RL that the train had a total of nine cars and was attacked as it passed through a tunnel in the remote, mountainous area.

The train came to a stop after the attack and remains inside the tunnel, Kashif said.

The militants said civilian passengers such as women, children, seniors and Baloch citizens had been released.

Ten military personnel who resisted have been killed, the U.S.-designated terrorist group claimed. The claim cannot be independently verified.

Balochistan, a vast, resource-rich but impoverished region, has been plagued by insurgency for many years.

In November, the BLA carried out a suicide bombing at a Quetta train station, killing 26 people, including military personnel, railway workers, and passengers.

With reporting by AFP and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-balochistan-liberation- army-attacks-train-hostages/33344025.html

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Militants Hijack Train, Take Dozens Of Hostages In Restive Pakistan Region