Death toll in Pakistan's train hijacking rises to 31, army says

By Asif Shahzad

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's military spokesman said on Friday the death toll in a train hijacking in the country's southwestern mountains had risen to 31 and he repeated accusations that neighbouring India and Afghanistan backed the militants who carried it out.

The separatist Baloch Liberation Army has claimed responsibility for hijacking the Jaffar Express on Tuesday. During the attack they blew up train tracks and held passengers hostage in a day-long standoff with security forces in a remote mountain pass in Balochistan province.

Army spokesperson Major General Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry

Chaudhry told a press conference in Islamabad: "We have evidence that all the links to terrorism in Pakistan are traced back to Afghanistan".

India was the main sponsor of the insurgents, he added.

Islamabad has long accused New Delhi and Kabul of providing money, resources, weapons and training grounds to the insurgents in Balochistan province, which borders Afghanistan and Iran.

Both countries have already denied the accusations, saying that the insurgency is Islamabad's internal problem.

Chaudhry said a final count of the casualties included 18 soldiers, three railway employees and five civilians among the passengers who were held hostages by the insurgents for over 24 hours.

Another five soldiers lost their lives during the rescue operation that killed 33 of the insurgents, he said. A total of 354 hostages were rescued, the general said.

The insurgents have said they still held hostages but Chaudhry said there was no evidence to suggest this was the case and the military has said the siege has ended.

The BLA is the largest and strongest of several ethnic Baloch insurgent groups which have been fighting for decades to win independence for the mineral-rich province, home to major China-led projects such as a port and gold and copper mines.

(Reporting by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Angus MacSwan)