The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a militant group advocating for Balochistan’s independence from Pakistan, has claimed responsibility for seizing control of a train and holding over 180 passengers—primarily Pakistani soldiers—hostage.
The group also stated that several military personnel were killed during the operation.
The Jaffar Express, carrying more than 450 passengers across nine bogies, was en route from Quetta in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa when it came under attack, railway officials told Reuters.
"Over 450 passengers onboard are being held hostage by gunmen," said Muhammad Kashif, a senior railway official based in Quetta, as reported by AFP.
In a statement released on social media and signed by its spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch, the BLA warned that any attempt by Pakistani security forces to intervene would result in the execution of the hostages.
The militants reportedly sabotaged the railway tracks, forcing the train to halt inside a tunnel, where they subsequently boarded and took control.
"Any military incursion will be met with an equally forceful response. So far, six military personnel have been killed, and hundreds of passengers remain under BLA custody. The Baloch Liberation Army takes full responsibility for this operation," the statement read.
Security forces have since arrived at the scene in the Mushqaf area of the Bolan district, according to a railway official. Meanwhile, the Balochistan government has declared an emergency, mobilizing all relevant institutions to manage the crisis, said government spokesperson Shahid Rind.
Balochistan has long been the center of an insurgency led by separatist groups seeking greater control over the province’s vast natural resources. The BLA, the largest of these militant factions, has been engaged in a protracted conflict with the Pakistani state, accusing it of exploiting the region’s mineral and gas reserves without fair distribution to the local population.
Despite being Pakistan’s largest province by land area—covering approximately 44% of the country’s total territory—Balochistan remains sparsely populated. The region is home to the strategically significant Gwadar port, one of the world’s deepest seaports, which Pakistan promotes as a key hub for regional and global trade.
Geographically, Balochistan shares borders with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the northeast, Punjab to the east, and Sindh to the southeast. It also neighbors Iran to the west and Afghanistan to the north, with its southern boundary along the Arabian Sea.
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