The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has issued severe threats to authorities considering freeing 450 people from the train of which it claims to have full control
A terror group has issued a chilling 48 hour warning after hijacking a train with 450 passengers.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) said Pakistan has 48 hours to “immediately and unconditionally release” prisoners, or the hostages will be killed and train destroyed The BLA had previously fired at the Jaffar Express Train as it followed a route from Quetta to Peshawar, and has claimed it is now fully under its control as it “remains stuck just before a tunnel surrounded by mountains”.
The organisation has warned of “severe consequences” should authorities launch an attempt to free the people it is currently holding hostage. In a statement, representatives warned hostages would be “executed” if local authorities attempted to launch a security operation.
Muhammad Kashif, Quetta’s railway controller, told the BBC that between 400 and 450 people had been booked on the train, but that officials are unsure as to how many have been taken hostage. A railway official in the Pakistani city said that at least 60 passengers had disembarked the train, and that they were able to reach Paniar, the closest railway station.
The train had departed from Quetta at 9am local time (4am GMT), several days after a letter from Balochistan’s Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) warned of a potential “planned attack”. The CTD had asked “all concerned authorities” to “take extraordinary precautions and safety measures to prevent any occurrence.”
A security force source told CNN on Tuesday that, despite the threats, a security operation was launched, and there is now an ongoing “exchange of fire”. They said security forceds had “surrounded the terrorists and an exchange of fire is ongoing”. The source claimed that the militants had taken “women and children and shields.”
They added: “Security forces will continue the operation until the last terrorist is eliminated.”
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