Pakistan Train Hijack: BLA Militants Say 50 Hostages Killed In Attack, China-Pakistan Strategic Ally Condemned Terror

12th March 2025 at 10:00 PM

1 minute read

A security force personnel member stands guard near a train containing empty coffins that are dispatched to Bolan where a passenger train that was attacked by separatist militants, at a railway station in Quetta, Pakistan, March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Stringer

Pakistani officials has informed that the insurgent attack on the Jaffar Express train ended as all militants were killed after an all-day long “full-scale” rescue operation which left a “few” hostages dead. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) militants said that they killed 50 more hostages who were hijacked from the Peshawar bound train near Bolan district on Tuesday. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) militants said that they killed 50 more hostages who were hijacked from the Peshawar bound train near Bolan district on Tuesday. The number of hostages killed could not be independently verified at the time of writing this report.

The militant group said in a statement, today, the enemy forces attempted an armed advance using heavy artillery and sophisticated weaponry, leading to intense clashes. BLA has executed 50 additional captive enemy personnel within the past hour. Sarfraz Bugti, the chief minister of Balochistan province, indicated that some hostages killed while addressing the provincial assembly. He said that We people have also been martyred, but we will share details later.

Security forces rescued over 300 hostages held by the gunmen so far, but the operation to rescue those under captivity continues. Efforts complicated on Wednesday as suicide bombers wearing explosive-laden vests were reportedly stationed near passengers held captive. Militants blew up a railway track and opened fire on the Jaffar Express train on Tuesday. After coming under fire, armed men took control of the train after exchanging fire with security personnel. The driver was wounded in the firing.

The militants placed a key demand on the Pakistani government to release the remaining hostages. BLA spokesman Jeeyand Baloch said the group was ready to free passengers if authorities agreed to release jailed militants from the outfit, designated as a “terrorist” organisation by the central government and the US. China, Pakistan’s strategic ally, condemned the train attack and said it firmly opposes terrorism in any form.