PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistani military has released 190 passengers from trains hijacked by separatist militants, security officials said Wednesday that the fighting continued to release dozens of hostages held by extremists in vests filled with explosives.
More than 400 people, including 214 soldiers and other security guards, joined the Jafar Express as they moved to a northern city in southwestern Balochistan province in the southwestern province of Pakistan on Tuesday.
When they entered a tunnel in a remote mountainous region of Balochistan, the railway tracks were blown up by extremists, and then fired on trains, killing 11 people in Pakistan’s first hijacking.
Armed with rockets, rena bullets and guns, the assailants began to take passengers hostage. Security officials said extremists will separate law enforcement officials from others before taking them to a small group of piles.
The extremists said Tuesday that they still hold 214 hostages, according to Reuters.
The rescue operations are being carried out very carefully, officials said as hostages are surrounded by extremists wearing vests containing explosives.
“They use these hostages as human shields,” a senior security guard who refused to be identified because he was not allowed to speak to news media told NBC News.
The Baroque Liberation Army (BLA), an armed ethnic group that carried out a longstanding rebellion against the Pakistani government, has argued for the attack. The group said it was seeking the release of Baroque political prisoners, activists and others within 48 hours, and threatening to execute hostages if the government fails to comply.
Security officials said 27 extremists had been killed in surgery so far to release the remaining hostages.
Bla said none of the fighters were killed, and the hostages were not released, but “freed all women, children, sick, and Baroque civilians.”
The 11 people killed in the first attack included train drivers and eight paramilitary troopers, security officials said. Thirty-seven others were injured, including two Pakistani army officers who were airlifted to a military hospital for treatment.
Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif condemned what he called a “co-sick attack.”
“Targeting innocent passengers during the peaceful and blessed month of Ramadan clearly reflects the lack of ties to Islam, Pakistan or Balochistan,” he said. “The fight against terrorism continues until this threat is completely eradicated from the country.”
Coach 9’s train remains trapped in the tunnel, and the area will be blocked by security forces.
“We have increased the security of Bolan considering the situation,” said Rana Muhammad Dilawar, district police director.
Security officials said 80 hostages released on Tuesday night, including 43 men, 26 women and 11 children, have reached safety at a railway station in Balochistan district, Pakistan’s largest, under-populated and undeveloped state.
They said that hostages had to walk for several hours at night before boarding the freight train as the railway tracks were damaged by extremists.
The BLA calls for the independence of Balochistan, a resource-rich province that transcends borders with Afghanistan and Iran, and its minority ethnic groups.
“The main reason the conflict continues in decades is that its establishment is anti-ethnic, and US-backed activities in neighbouring Afghanistan is ramping, and Pakistan’s terrorism is ramping.”
Extremist violence has skyrocketed in Balochistan since US-led troops retreated from Afghanistan in 2021, allowing the Taliban to return to power. Pakistan and Afghanistan accus each other of supporting the anti-government rebellion of each other’s countries.
The BLA has frequently attacked Pakistani security forces, but it has also attacked civilians, including Chinese citizens working on infrastructure projects.
A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry on Wednesday said Beijing strongly condemned the train attacks, “will continue to support Pakistan in its counterterrorism efforts.”
Mushtaq Yusufzai reported from Peshawar, while Jennifer Jett and Mithil Aggarwal reported from Hong Kong.
