Karachi/Islamabad, Mar 12 (PTI) Pakistani security forces killed at least 16 militants and rescued 104 passengers from a train hijacked by Baloch insurgents in the troubled Balochistan province as they continued to battle insurgents for a second on Wednesday.

The Jaffar Express, with around 500 passengers on board in nine coaches, was travelling from Quetta to Peshawar when armed men intercepted it in a tunnel near the mountainous terrain of Gudalar and Piru Kunri in the Bolan area on Tuesday afternoon.

The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) later claimed claimed responsibility for the attack.

Bolan is a mountainous area of more than 100 kilometres between Quetta and Sibi. There are 17 tunnels in this area through which the railway track passes. The speed of trains is often slow in the area due to the difficult terrain.

Security sources confirmed that in an ongoing gun battle with the militants, they managed to rescue 104 passengers, including women and children.

“In the gun battle, which is still going on, 16 militants have been killed and many others injured," one source said, adding the clean-up operation will continue until all passengers are rescued from the train.

“The militants have now formed small groups to try to escape in the dark, but the security forces have surrounded the tunnel and the remaining passengers will also be rescued soon,” the source said.

The other militants are said to have taken some of the passengers into the mountains with the security forces pursuing them.

The source said that the rescued passengers, including 58 men, 31 women and 15 children, had been sent to Mach (a town in the Kachhi district in the Balochistan province of Pakistan) by another train.

The security forces had earlier managed to rescue 80 passengers, including 43 men, 26 women and 11 children, said Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind.

Though the authorities have not given any more details, Rind said the security forces, including military troops, had reached the rough terrain where the tunnel is located shortly after railway authorities were alerted to the train being stopped there.

The Pakistan media reported intense firing and explosion near the tunnel, where the militants hijacked the train.

Rind said that they had dispatched rescue teams amid reports of “intense” firing at a Peshawar-bound passenger train.

Pakistan Railways have set up an emergency desk at the Peshawar and Quetta Railway stations as frantic relatives and friends try to get some information about their loved ones on the train.

Pakistan Railways had resumed train services to Peshawar from Quetta after a suspension of more than a month and a half.

The rebels claimed that they had set women and children free but the claim was contested by officials and Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said that the hostages were released by the security forces.

Rana Muhammad Dilawar, a district police officer in the area where the train was stopped, said the security forces had surrounded the area, but there were reports that the militants had taken some women and children as hostages.

There were around four to five government officials on the train, he added.

Tariq Mahmood, a senior official of Peshawar Railway Station, said that people should not pay heed to rumours on social media and otherwise.

Official data on civilian casualties was not available, but security sources said that the train driver and several passengers were injured in the gunfire.

The BLA claimed it seized control of the train by derailing it. The group said it has killed six security personnel and taken over 100 people in custody, including security personnel.

In a statement, the BLA warned that if the Pakistan military launches an operation, "all hostages will be executed". The group is banned in Pakistan, the UK and the US.

Balochistan has witnessed an uptick in terrorist attacks over the past year. In November 2024, at least 26 people were killed and 62 injured after a suicide blast ripped through a Quetta Railway Station.

Balochistan, bordering Iran and Afghanistan, is home to a long-running violent insurgency. Baloch insurgent groups frequently carry out attacks targeting security personnel, government projects and the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects in the oil and mineral-rich province. PTI Corr/ SH AS NSA NSA NSA