Militants from the Balochistan Liberation Army attacked a train traveling through the Pakistani province and threatened to kill the passengers.
Reuters reports this.
The Jaffar Express passenger train was en route from the city of Quetta to Peshawar when it was seized by militants. The train was trapped in a tunnel and was fired upon, wounding the driver, police and railway officials said. There was a gunfight between security forces and separatists in the mountainous area.
Armed members of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) group threatened to execute the hostages if the security forces did not withdraw. They claimed to have taken 182 hostages, including soldiers and security personnel who were on leave. The militants said they had killed 20 soldiers and shot down a drone.
Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said the government would not compromise with “animals who shoot innocent passengers”. Balochistan authorities imposed emergency measures to control the situation. The civilian passengers, who included the elderly, women, and children, were later released.
- An insurgency in Balochistan has been raging for decades, with regular attacks on the army and government. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) seeks independence for the region. It is the largest of several ethnic insurgent groups that accuse the Pakistani government of unfairly exploiting Balochistanʼs gas and mineral resources.
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