March 15, 2025 1:59 PM.
In Balochistan, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has claimed to have executed all 214 hostages, captured during the Jaffar Express passenger train incident.
Jeeyand Baloch, the spokesperson for the rebel organization, said that the Pakistani forces failed to respond to a 48-hour ultimatum for a prisoner exchange, leading to the mass execution.
The rebel organisation further claimed that they have always acted as per the international law, but the stubbornness of Pakistan forced them to act thus.
The BLA also stated that their fighters, known as Fidayeen, carried out the operation with the intent to fight until the last bullet, ultimately taking their own lives after killing the hostages and engaging Pakistani soldiers.
Earlier, Pakistani security sources claimed that the Jaffar Express clearance operation, launched after the train’s hijacking in Balochistan, was complete. At least 346 hostages had been rescued and all 33 attackers neutralized, the source claimed.
On Wednesday, the militants gave a 48-hour ultimatum to the government to release Baloch political prisoners and activists who it claimed were abducted by the Pakistani military in exchange for the hostages.
“However, Pakistan, displaying its traditional stubbornness and military arrogance, not only avoided serious negotiations but also turned a blind eye to the ground realities. As a result of this stubbornness, all 214 hostages have been executed,” the BLA said in a statement.
The Baloch Liberation Army, a separatist group seeking Balochistan’s secession from Pakistan, hijacked the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express on Tuesday after blowing up the railway tracks. The train was carrying over 400 passengers, mostly security personnel.
The Pakistani Army, which launched an operation to free the hostages, said the siege ended on Wednesday after a 30-hour operation in which all the 33 rebels were killed. The Army claimed that 23 soldiers, three railway employees and five passengers had died in the attack.
However, the Baloch rebels countered Pakistan’s claim, saying intense fighting was on, and the security forces were “suffering heavy losses”. In its latest statement, the BLA claimed 12 of its personnel were killed in the operation, named Darra-e-Bolan.
“The Fidayeen locked some hostage military personnel in special bogies and took up positions while other freedom fighters managed to take the remaining hostages to a safe location. When the Pakistani commandos arrived, the Fidayeen surrounded and attacked them fiercely. The commandos suffered heavy casualties while the hostages were also executed,” the BLA statement further said.
