Pakistan insurgents take dozens of hostages in attack on train, police say

By Saleem Ahmed

QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Separatist militants blew up a railway track and opened fire on a passenger train in southwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, taking dozens of hostages and battling security forces conducting a rescue operation, police and the insurgents said.

Police have not specified how many passengers were taken hostage in the remote mountainous area but the insurgents said they were holding 214 people, and have threatened to start executing them.

"The affected train is still on the spot and the armed men are holding passengers," senior district police officer Rana Dilawar said.

"Security forces launched a massive operation," he said, adding that helicopters and special forces had been deployed.

The train was trapped in a tunnel and the driver was killed after sustaining serious injuries, local authorities, police and railway officials said.

The Baloch Liberation Army, a separatist militant group, said it blew up the tracks and "swiftly took control of the train". The group said it would execute 10 people in response to the ongoing military operation.

The BLA has demanded the release within 48 hours of Baloch political prisoners, activists and missing persons it said had been abducted by the military.

"BLA is prepared for a prisoner exchange," the group said.

"If our demands are not met within the stipulated period or if the occupying state attempts any military action during this time all prisoners of war will be neutralized and the train will be completely destroyed."

The group, which seeks independence for Balochistan province bordering both Afghanistan and Iran, said the hostages included Pakistan Army members and other security officials travelling on leave.

Dilawar said some of the militants had taken a group of around 35 hostages into the mountains while others were still holding the locomotive. He had previously said that over 300 hostages were safe but security officials have since announced that 104 people have been rescued so far.

Security forces said an explosion had been heard near the tunnel and that they were exchanging fire with the militants in a mountainous area.

A security source who asked not to be identified said many people had lost their lives in the attack, adding that 80 military personnel were among the 425 passengers aboard the train.

Another security source said 104 passengers had been rescued, 17 wounded taken to hospital and 16 militants had been killed, adding the rest were surrounded.

"The operation will continue until the last terrorist is eliminated," they said.

The BLA said it has not suffered any casualties. It said it had killed 30 soldiers and shot down a drone. There was no confirmation of that from Pakistani authorities.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack, saying security officials were "repelling" the militants.

EXECUTIONS THREATENED

"Civilian passengers, particularly women, children, the elderly, and Baloch citizens, have been released safely and given a secure route," the BLA said in a statement emailed to journalists and posted on Telegram.

"The BLA further warns that if military intervention continues, all hostages will be executed."

The Jaffar Express had been on its way from Balochistan's capital, Quetta, to the city of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province when it was fired on.

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack and praised the military for rescuing more than 100 passengers.

"Those who attack innocent passengers are enemies of the country," he said.

"Enemy forces are conspiring to create instability in the country through terrorism in Balochistan."

The Balochistan government has imposed emergency measures to deal with the situation, spokesperson Shahid Rind said, without giving any more details.

The BLA is the biggest of several groups that have been battling the government for decades, saying it unfairly exploits Balochistan's rich gas and mineral resources.

The conflict has seen frequent attacks against the government, army and Chinese interests in the region.

(Reporting by Saleem Ahmed in Quetta; Additional reporting by Saud Mehsud in Dera Ismail Khan, Mushtaq Ali in Peshawar, and Asif Shahzad in Islamabad; Writing by Saad Sayeed; Editing by Timothy Heritage, Andrew Cawthorne, David Gregorio and Sandra Maler)