March 12, 2025 (EIRNS)—The terrorist Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) hijacked a train in Pakistan’s Balochistan holding passengers, officials said. The BLA issued a statement claiming the hostage taking took place on March 11 and Pakistani security forces launched a massive operation, rescuing at least 190 passengers and killing 30 terrorists as the rescue operation continued into March 12.
The unprecedented hostage situation took place about 157 km from Quetta, when terrorists attacked and took more than 400 passengers hostage, including numerous security personnel.
“The terrorists responsible for the cowardly attack on Jaffar Express are in contact with their facilitators in Afghanistan,” Radio Pakistan said. “The terrorists have positioned suicide bombers very close to some innocent hostages. The suicide bombers are wearing explosive vests,” the report quoted security sources as saying. In anticipation of possible defeat, the terrorists are using innocent people as human shields,” the report said. So far no people have been reported to have been killed.
According to the Pakistani daily The Dawn, the hijacking is a first of its kind event, as terrorists had never attempted to attack or take an entire train and its occupants hostage earlier. The security operation is ongoing.
The BLA has targeted the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which passes through the region and has conducted attacks on Chinese engineers and officials.
