Security forces
in Pakistan say 190 train passengers have been freed after being taken hostage
by gunmen in the province of Balochistan. The sources say the operation is slow
as the ethnic Baloch rebels are using civilians as human shields. There are
reports that some hostages have been taken away into the mountains. A
separatist militant group called the Baloch Liberation Army has claimed that it
carried out the attack.
The Jaffer
Express was carrying more than 400 people when armed men blew up the tracks and
opened fire. Train operations in the area have been suspended, according to
officials.
One of the
hostages said: "People were screaming and crying. Everybody laid down on
the ground, including us. There were gunshots and explosions. After that, the
militants told us to come out. We were reluctant at first, but we got out
anyway. They let us go, all of us, including my wife and children. They told
us, 'Don't look back. Just leave.'"
Reporter said:
"The incident has taken place in an extremely remote area. There's very
limited mobile phone service, so that's why even families are having a lot of
difficulty reaching those who are still being held on this train. But we do
have some information that's trickling out, even though it's very tightly
controlled and difficult for us to independently verify. Security sources are
saying that now 190 people have been freed. They're also saying that 30
militants have now been killed. What the news source has seen in the area at
the Quetta railway station is about 90 wooden coffins being loaded onto a
train. Officials have said that about 30 more empty coffins are being prepared
to transport to the scene of the incident for any possible casualties.
Now, of course,
this is an active situation. The Baloch Liberation Army has said that it is
still in control of the train and they have threatened those on board."
The activity of the Baloch Liberation Army
They're behind
many deadly incidents in the province, and they, as well as several other
separatist militant groups in Balochistan, are calling for independence. They
accuse the central government of exploiting the rich resources in Balochistan,
because even though it's the least developed province in Pakistan, it has many
natural resources like gas and minerals. In fact, it's an area that's very
important to China as well. China has a multi-billion-dollar project there
called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. And yet we're not talking about
attacks on vehicles or buses; we're now talking about an attack on a train that
had hundreds of passengers on board. So, it's an escalation of their activity.
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