16 Militants Killed, Over 100 Passengers Rescued in Pakistan Train Attack

• Militants attacked a passenger train in Balochistan, taking hostages and demanding the release of political prisoners.
• Security forces have killed 16 militants and rescued 104 passengers, including 17 injured individuals.
• Communication remains difficult as the attack site lacks internet and mobile network coverage.

Armed militants in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province launched a deadly assault on a passenger train carrying more than 400 people, taking several hostages, military sources confirmed on Tuesday.

The separatist Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) opened fire on the Jaffar Express as it made its way from Quetta to Peshawar. Before storming the train, the group claimed to have detonated explosives on the tracks in the remote Sibi district, asserting that the train was under their control.

By Wednesday morning, at least 16 militants had been killed, and security forces had managed to rescue 104 passengers, according to local media reports. Among those freed, 17 injured individuals were transported to a hospital for urgent medical treatment.

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The attackers had issued a 48-hour ultimatum, threatening to execute the hostages unless authorities released Baloch political prisoners, as per local reports. The Pakistani military and security forces launched a large-scale rescue operation, which remains ongoing.

“There was intense firing on the train,” a spokesperson for the Balochistan government told Dawn newspaper on Tuesday. According to the AFP news agency, a senior police official confirmed that the train had come to a halt just before a tunnel, surrounded by mountains, complicating rescue efforts.

A senior army official revealed that over 100 military personnel were onboard the train, travelling from Quetta at the time of the attack.

The BLA, which has been designated a terrorist organization by Pakistan and several Western nations, including the United States and the United Kingdom, has waged an insurgency for decades, seeking independence for Balochistan. The group has a long history of targeting police stations, railway infrastructure, and highways. On Tuesday, it warned of “severe consequences” should security forces attempt to free the remaining hostages.

Passengers who managed to escape described harrowing scenes of chaos and fear.

“I can’t even find the words to describe how we managed to escape. It was terrifying,” said Muhammad Bilal, one of the freed hostages, speaking to AFP.

Another passenger, 49-year-old Allahditta, recalled the moment the attackers stormed the train. He was allowed to leave due to a heart condition but described the panic inside: “People began hiding under the seats in terror.”

A local railway official in Quetta told the BBC that 80 passengers—including 11 children, 26 women, and 43 men—had disembarked the train and walked to the nearest railway station, Panir, to escape the violence. The group primarily consisted of locals from Balochistan province.

Back in Quetta, worried relatives gathered at the railway station, desperate for updates.

One man, whose brother-in-law remained trapped on the train, described an agonizing wait. He had attempted to drive toward the attack site, but roads had been closed by security forces.

Another anxious family member, Muhammad Ashraf, told BBC Urdu that he had been unable to reach his father, who had left Quetta for Lahore on Tuesday morning.

Imran Khan, another distressed relative, told Reuters that he was “frantic with worry” over his cousin and her young child, who had been travelling from Quetta to Multan to pick up a family member.

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“No one is telling me what’s happening or if they’re safe,” he said.

Authorities acknowledged that communication with passengers still onboard remained nearly impossible, as the attack site lacks internet and mobile network coverage.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest and most resource-rich province, has long been plagued by insurgency and unrest. Despite its vast reserves of natural gas, coal, and minerals, it remains the least developed region in the country, fueling separatist grievances.

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