The train in Pakistan that was hijacked by separatist militants is currently at risk of being blown up, with the 182 remaining hostages facing execution if the group’s demands are not met.
According to Pakistani officials, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) seized control of the train and held about 400 passengers, but approximately 200 captives have since been released.
The BLA is asking for the immediate and unconditional release of their imprisoned members by Pakistani authorities, stating that failure to comply will result in the deaths of the remaining hostages.
They also warned that any attempt by the military to advance on the BLA and free the hostages by force would result in them being killed, according to a post by the group on Telegram.
The BLA said it had control of the train for more than eight hours during armed combat with Pakistani forces, during which time it claimed it killed 30 government soldiers.
The Jaffar Express passenger train was held in a tunnel and the driver badly wounded in a gun battle earlier on Tuesday, local officials said, without confirming the militants’ account about hostages.
Security forces said an explosion had been heard near the tunnel and that they were exchanging fire with the militants in a mountainous area.
The BLA, which seeks independence for Balochistan province bordering both Afghanistan and Iran, said it had killed 20 soldiers and shot down a drone. This was not confirmed by Pakistani authorities.
The Jaffar Express 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
File image shows the Bolan Pass, the railway line where the hijack reportedly took place
Pakistani security officials inspect vehicles at a checkpoint after security was intensified following a suspected militant attack on a passenger train in Sibi
The group said it had taken 182 hostages from the train, including Pakistan army members and other security officials travelling on leave.
‘Civilian passengers, particularly women, children, the elderly, and Baloch citizens, have been released safely and given a secure route,’ it said in a statement emailed to journalists and posted on Telegram.
‘The BLA further warns that if military intervention continues, all hostages will be executed.’
The train had been on its way from Balochistan’s capital Quetta to the city of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province when it was fired on.
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’.
The Balochistan government has imposed emergency measures to deal with the situation, spokesperson Shahid Rind said.
The BLA is the biggest of several ethnic groups battling the government for decades, saying it unfairly exploits Balochistan’s rich gas and mineral resources.
The conflict has seen frequent attacks against the government, army and Chinese interests in the region.
A spokesperson for the Balochistan government said that the attack was an act of terrorism, adding that an investigation into it is underway.
Pakistani security stand guard at a checkpoint after security was intensified following a suspected militant attack on a passenger train in Sibi, Balochistan province
He added that a relief train had been dispatched to the scene and that security forces are working in the area.
A senior police official from the area said that ‘the train remains stuck just before a tunnel surrounded by mountains’.
The area where the train is halted is a mountainous region making it easier for militants to have hideouts and plan attacks.
A state of emergency has been declared in Sibi Hospital and ambulances have been sent to the scene but are having difficulty accessing it, according to officials.
The number of hostages taken could not be confirmed by railway or local government officials.
Trains in Balochistan typically have security personnel on board as separatists have previously carried out deadly attacks on trains and security forces in the region.
In November, a separatist group carried out a suicide bombing at a train station in Quetta that killed 26 people, including security personnel, railway staff and passengers.
The BLA separatist group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Pictured: BLA fighters
A decades-old insurgency in Balochistan by separatist militant groups has led to frequent attacks against the government, army and Chinese interests in the region, pressing demands for a share in its resources.
The oil- and mineral-rich Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest but also least populated province.
It is a hub for the country’s ethnic Baloch minority whose members say they face discrimination and exploitation by the central government.
The BLA is the biggest of several ethnic insurgent groups that have battled the South Asian nation’s government for decades, saying it unfairly exploits Balochistan’s rich gas and mineral resources.
