Karachi — At least 13 militants were killed and 80 passengers rescued by security forces after suspected Baloch militants hijacked a train in a tunnel in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan’s province on Tuesday, security officials said.
The Jaffar Express, carrying approximately 500 passengers in nine bogies, was travelling from Quetta to Peshawar when armed men intercepted it in a tunnel near the mountainous terrain of Gudalar and Piru Kunri on Tuesday morning.
Security officials said so far they have killed 13 militants and rescued 80 passengers. The rescue operation is underway, they said.
Earlier, Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind said, “The security forces have managed to rescue 80 passengers — 43 men, 26 women and 11 children — from a bogie.”
However, around 400 passengers remained on the train, still trapped inside the tunnel as security forces engaged in a gun battle with the militants, he said.
Rind said rescue teams have been dispatched amid reports of “intense” firing at the Peshawar-bound passenger train.
