Armed extremists in Pakistan’s Balochistan region have attacked trains carrying more than 400 passengers and have taken many passengers hostage, military sources told the BBC on Tuesday.
The Baroque Liberation Army (BLA) fired on a Jafar Express train as it moved from Quetta to Peshawar.
The separatist group said it bombed the tracks before raiding a train in the remote Sibi district before claiming that the train was under its control.
Local media said at least 16 militants were killed and 104 passengers were rescued Wednesday morning.
Among those rescued, there are 17 injured people who were hospitalized for treatment.
Local reports say that if authorities did not release a Baroque political prisoner within 48 hours, extremists threatened to kill hostages.
Rescue operations are underway.
A spokesman for the Balochistan government told local newspaper Dawn on Tuesday that there was a report of “severe shootings” on the train.
The officer said he was “stuck just before a tunnel surrounded by mountains,” AFP news agency reported.
A senior Army official confirmed to the BBC that there were more than 100 Army personnel traveling from Quetta by train.
Pakistani authorities, like several Western countries, including the UK and the US, have designated the BLA as a terrorist organization.
They have launched decades of rebellion to gain independence, launching many deadly attacks, and often targeting police stations, rail lines and highways.
On Tuesday, the group warned of “serious consequences” if attempts were made to rescue people who held them.
“We can’t find a word to explain how we got away. It was horrifying,” Muhammad Bilal, one of the released hostages, told AFP News Agency.
Another passenger, Allahditta, said he was allowed to go due to his heart condition. The 49-year-old recalled how people “began hiding under seats of panic” when the attackers attacked the train.
A local train official in Quetta previously told the BBC that 80 passengers (11 children, 26 women and 43 men) had disembarked the train and walked to the nearest train station, Paneire.
Officials said the group is made up of local people in Balochistan.
One man whose brother-in-law was still being held on the train, explained the painful wait. He wanted to drive to the area, but said many of the roads were closed.
Meanwhile, the uneasy family of passengers was trying to get information about their loved ones from the counter at Quetta train station.
The son of one passenger, Muhammad Ashraf, who left Quetta in Lahore on Tuesday morning, said he was unable to contact BBC Urdu with his father.
Another relative said he was “worried and crazy” about his cousin and her little one.
“No one has told me what’s going on with me or whether it’s safe or not,” Imran Khan told Reuters.
Officials say they have not yet communicated with anyone on the train.
The area does not have internet and mobile network coverage, officials told the BBC.
Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest state and the richest state in terms of natural resources, but it is the least developed.
Additional Reports by Usman Zahid and BBC Urdu
