Jaffar Express: 13 BLA militants killed, 80 hostages recovered

QUETTA: Security forces have killed 13 militants and recovered as many as 80 hostages during the clearance operation launched after Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) hijacked a train called Jaffar Express in an remote area of Balochistan, security sources confirmed.

According to sources, 11 children, 26 women, and 43 men are among the hostages salvaged by the security forces.

The banned BLA said that it has taken 182 passengers, including military personnel, hostage in an attack on Jaffar Express and threatened to kill them if security forces did not leave the area.

Jaffar Express, which had about 400 passengers onboard, was trapped in a tunnel, and the driver was badly wounded, local authorities, police and railway officials said, without confirming the BLA’s hostage claim.Security forces said an explosion had been heard near the tunnel and that they were exchanging fire with the militants in a mountainous area.

However, local police officials told Reuters that armed men have taken 35 passengers hostage in Jaffar Express attack, and nearly 350 passengers are safe. 

Operation under way to salvage Jaffar Express hostages 

The high-level clearance operation continues as 80 of more than 450 passengers held hostage by armed BLA militants after they attacked Jaffar Express have been salvaged, security sources said.

Source say that security personnel have surrounded the attackers, and an exchange of gunfire is ongoing.  The militants have used women and children as human shields, complicating security forces’ operations against them.

Sources further said that due to the presence of women and children, the operation is being carried out with extreme caution to minimise casualties.

However, investigators have affirmed that the operation will continue until the last terrorist is eliminated. 

Jaffar Express attackers in contact with mastermind in Afghanistan

Meanwhile, investigative sources have revealed that the terrorists involved in the Jaffar Express attack are reportedly in contact with their mastermind in Afghanistan.

Who is the BLA behind Jaffar Express hijacking?

Besides, sources claim that Indian and anti-state elements on social media have launched an unusually active propaganda campaign following the cowardly attack on Jaffar Express. Indian media and social media platforms are reportedly engaged in spreading misleading, false, and fabricated propaganda. 

According to investigators, old videos, images, and fake WhatsApp messages are being circulated in an attempt to create panic. They say that a coordinated disinformation campaign is being run to spread unrest among the public. 

Additionally, social media accounts linked to the terrorists are reportedly amplifying anti-Pakistan rhetoric in collaboration with Indian media. Sources have also accused Indian media of featuring self-exiled Baloch figures to mislead audiences. 

Authorities have urged the public to rely on verified sources for information instead of falling for misleading and baseless propaganda.

BLA threatens to execute Jaffar Express hostages

The BLA, which seeks separation for Balochistan province bordering both Afghanistan and Iran, said it had killed 20 soldiers and shot down a drone. There was no confirmation of that from Pakistani authorities.

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The group said it had taken 182 hostages from the Jaffar Express 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.

Meanwhile, railway officials in Quetta, quoting paramilitary sources, told the BBC that women and children had disembarked from the train and were walking towards the city of Sibi. They did not have an exact number.

“The BLA further warns that if military intervention continues, all hostages will be executed.”

The Jaffar Express had been on its way from Balochistan’s capital Quetta to the city of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province when it was fired on.

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, without giving more details.

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.