Security forces killed at least 16 terrorists and rescued 104 passengers after a passenger train was attacked by Baloch militants in a tunnel in a tunnel in a turbulent Balochistan province of Pakistan on Tuesday. Security officials gave this information.
Officials said that in nine coaches, about 400 passengers were going from Jafar Express Quetta to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa when it was shot on Tuesday afternoon between Gudlar and Piru Konari areas. The ‘Balochistan Liberation Army’ (BLA) claimed responsibility for this attack.
Security sources have confirmed that they managed to save 104 passengers including women and children during an encounter with terrorists.
A source said, “16 terrorists have been killed and many others were injured in the encounter. The encounter is still going on. ”He said that the campaign against the terrorists will continue till all the passengers are expelled from the train.
It is said that other terrorists have taken some passengers to the hilly areas and the security forces chased them in the dark. The source said that the passengers rescued include 58 men, 31 women and 15 children and they have been sent by another train to Mach (a city in Kachchi district of Balochistan province of Pakistan).
He said, “Terrorists have now formed small groups to try to escape by resorting to darkness, but security forces have surrounded the tunnel and the remaining passengers will also be saved soon.”
Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind said that security forces succeeded in redeeming 80 passengers from a compartment – 43 men, 26 women and 11 children.
Although the authorities have not given any other details, Rind said that the security forces including military troops reached the inaccessible area where the tunnel is located soon after receiving the information about the train being stopped in the tunnel.
Pakistani media has reported a horrific firing and explosion near the tunnel, where the terrorists attacked the train.
Rind said that the rescue team has been sent to the spot amid reports of “fierce” firing on the passenger train going to Peshawar.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Railway has set up an emergency desk at Quetta railway station as anxious relatives are arriving to get information about their loved ones.
In October last year, Pakistan Railways announced the restoration of rail services between Quetta and Peshawar after a suspension of more than one and a half months.
In the area where the train has been stopped, the district police officer Rana Mohammad Dilawar said that the security forces have surrounded the area, but there are reports that the terrorists have taken some women and children hostage. He said that about four to five government officials were aboard the train.
Senior officer of Peshawar railway station Tariq Mahmood said that people should not pay attention to the rumors being spread through social media and other means.
In November last year, a suicide bomber blew himself up by a suicide bomb at Quetta railway station in which 26 people were killed and 62 others were injured after which the Railways suspended several services.
