Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director-General Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Wednesday night confirmed that security forces had concluded the operation against terrorists who had hijacked the Jaffar Express in Balochistan a day earlier, killing all 33 assailants.
Appearing on Dunya News, he said no passengers were harmed during the clearance operation. “All 33 terrorists have been sent to hell … Four Frontier Corps personnel embraced martyrdom during the clearance operation,” he said, adding the militants had killed 21 hostages before the security forces could respond.
“No one can be permitted to make innocent people of Pakistan the victim of their barbarism in the streets, trains, buses or markets because of their misleading ideology,” he said, emphasizing that anyone who attempts similar crimes would be hunted down and brought to justice. “This incident of Jaffar Express changes the rules of the game,” he emphasized.
During the interview, the military spokesman confirmed reports from security sources claiming the attackers—belonging to the banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA)—were in contact with their handlers in Afghanistan during the hijacking. He said the militants had sought to use the hostages, including women and children, as human shields by gathering them in groups with suicide bombers. Security forces countered this by neutralizing the bombers with snipers, he said.
Drone footage released by the ISPR showed three separate groups of people huddled together by the side of the train. According to Chaudhry, 440 passengers were on the train when it was hijacked on Tuesday afternoon. He said the Army, Air Force, Frontier Corps and SSG personnel had all taken part in the operation.
A police officer who survived the attack told BBC Urdu that initially dozens of militants had hijacked the train. However, he said, a majority of them withdrew on Tuesday night, leaving 20-30 militants behind with the hostages.
Disinformation War
Lt. Gen. Chaudhry also criticized the spread of misinformation about the incident on social media, particularly from India, saying this proved the “nexus between the terrorists and their masters to the whole world.” He regretted that some Pakistani political elements had also indulged in such actions rather than supporting the state, seemingly justifying the terrorist actions. “Sadly, some elements are sacrificing the national interest due to their lust for political power,” he said.
Separately, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar also issued a video statement, condemning “propaganda spread by the Indian media.” He claimed the “pre-planned narrative” aimed to mislead the public and it was unfortunate that some elements had sought to exploit this for their own agenda. He claimed the language of some opposition leaders was the same as that of the BLA and Indian media.
Hijacking
The Jaffar Express hijacking occurred while the train was traveling from Quetta to Peshawar. The train was initially halted with an explosion on the track. Subsequently, armed gunmen surrounded the train and forced their way in. They then separated the passengers on the basis of ethnicity, allowing Baloch women and children and elderly to leave, while taking hostage all other ethnicities.
After the hijacking, all train services from Quetta to the rest of the country were suspended.