The Pakistan security forces have killed all the militants and rescued 190 hostages from the train hijacked in the Balochistan province, several reports said on Wednesday.
The Jaffar Express, carrying 440 passengers in nine coaches, was going from Quetta to Peshawar when Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) attacked the train, derailed it using explosives and hijacked it near the mountainous terrain of Gudalar and Piru Kunri in a tunnel 160 kilometres from Quetta.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said that the operation to eliminate the Baloch militants launched on Tuesday has been completed. He added that all terrorists present there have been killed.
Army spokesman Lt Gen Ahmad Sharif, while speaking to Dunya News TV, said that 21 passengers and four paramilitary soldiers were killed by Baloch militants holding hostages.
Sharif said that the Pakistani security forces killed all 33 militants present at the scene. “The armed forces successfully concluded the operation in the (Wednesday) evening by killing all terrorists and rescuing all passengers safely,” Lt Gen Sharif said.
Security officials earlier in the day said that at least 190 passengers have been freed from the hijacked Jaffar Express in the Bolan district. The train was carrying around 500 passengers, including security personnel, when militants derailed it using explosives and hijacked it. There were 70 to 80 terrorists involved in the hijack incident, according to the Pakistani government.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in his first reaction to the train hijack incident, said that dozens of terrorists have been ‘sent to hell’ and added he is deeply shocked by the loss of innocent lives.
Spoke with Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti who briefed me on the latest developments in the heinous terrorist attack on Jaffar Express. The entire nation is deeply shocked by this dastardly act and saddened by the loss of innocent lives—such cowardly acts will not shake Pakistan’s…
— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) March 12, 2025
“Spoke with Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti who briefed me on the latest developments in the heinous terrorist attack on Jaffar Express. The entire nation is deeply shocked by this dastardly act and saddened by the loss of innocent lives—such cowardly acts will not shake Pakistan’s resolve for peace. I offer my heartfelt condolences to the families of the martyrs. May Allah grant them the highest ranks in Jannah and bless those injured with a swift recovery. Dozens of the terrorists have been sent to hell,” Shehbaz Sharif said in a post on X.
