The Baluch Liberation Army (BLA) confirmed it had attacked
the Jaffar Express Train which was traveling from Quetta to Rawalpindi.
The militant group has also claimed the train is under their
control.
Pakistani police told news reporters that they had received
information that three people, including the train driver, had been injured in
the attack.
Police added that security forces had been sent to the scene
of the attack.
In a statement, the BLA, a militant separatist group,
claimed responsibility for the attack and said they had taken hostages from the
train, including security forces.
Officials from the provincial government or railways did not
confirm on hostages being taken.
Security forces had reached the site of the incident, in the
Mushqaf area of the Bolan district, a railway official said.
The provincial government has imposed emergency measures and
all institutions have been mobilized to deal with the situation, government
spokesperson Shahid Rind said.
A decades-long insurgency in Baluchistan by separatist
militant groups has led to frequent attacks against the government, army and
Chinese interests in the region, pressing demands for a share in mineral-rich
resources.
The BLA seeks independence for Baluchistan. It is the
biggest of several ethnic insurgent groups that have battled the South Asian
nation’s government for decades, saying it unfairly exploits Baluchistan’s rich
gas and mineral resources.
