Jaffar Express hijack ! - killings, claims & counter claims

Remember Mani Ratnam’s movie Thiruda, Thiruda – starring Prashant, Anand, Anu Aggarwal, Heera Rajagopal -  ‘the plot was the stealing of fresh printed bank notes of an incredible 1000 crores value from a  moving train by the henchmen.’ ……….. the Train engine would be cut-off and hijacked !! – thought train hijack can happen only in Cinema. 

The Pāratarājas  was a dynasty of Indo-Scythian kings in the territory of modern-day Baluchistan province of Pakistan from circa 125 CE to circa 300 CE. Balochistan   is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region of desert and mountains is primarily populated by ethnic Baloch people.  The Balochistan region is split among three countries: Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Administratively it comprises the Pakistani province of Balochistan, the Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchestan, and the southern areas of Afghanistan.   

The Pakistani province of  Balochistan   bordered by the  provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, sharing International borders with Iran   and Afghanistan, bound by Arabian sea has been in news for all wrong reasons.  The name "Balochistan" means "the land of the Baloch". Largely underdeveloped, its economy is also dominated by natural resources, especially its natural gas fields. Aside from Quetta, the second-largest city of the province is Turbat in the south, while another area of major economic importance is the port city of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea, an emerging future business hub. 

Jaffar Express  is a passenger train operated daily by Pakistan Railways between Quetta and Peshawar.  The trip takes approximately 34 hours, 10 minutes to cover a published distance of 1,632 kilometres (1,014 mi), traveling along a stretch of the Rohri–Chaman Railway Line and Karachi–Peshawar Railway Line. 

Unidentified gunmen opened fire on this  express train in Pakistan's troubled Balochistan province on Tuesday, injuring several passengers, local media reports initially said. The attack on the Jaffer Express passenger train took place near Ab-e-Gum area of Mach Town in Balochistan's Kachhi district, where around six armed men opened fire on the train, spreading panic among passengers, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.  Later media confirmed that it was a case of ‘train –hijack’.  Controller Railways said that the train, comprising nine coaches, had around 500 passengers on board. "The train was stopped by armed men in Tunnel No 8," the controller said. 

The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attack. The group is banned in Pakistan, the UK and the US. According to initial reports, multiple travellers were wounded in the attack. Rescue teams and security forces reached the scene, and an operation was planned  to track down the assailants. Railway officials confirmed that the train's driver sustained serious injuries, and an emergency relief train has been dispatched to assist.  A senior police official from the area bordering Sibi, who asked not be named because he was not authorised to speak to the media, told AFP that “the train remains stuck just before a tunnel surrounded by mountains”.

The Balochistan government directed local authorities to take "emergency measures". In a statement, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) said that they have "completely repelled the Pakistani military's ground assault following the seizure of Jaffar Express. After intense clashes, Pakistani ground troops were forced to retreat, but airstrikes from helicopters and drones continue unabated." "The BLA issued  warning: if the aerial bombardment is not halted immediately, all 100+ hostages will be executed within the next hour.   

Only Oct last year,  Pakistan Railways announced the restoration of train services between Quetta and Peshawar after a suspension of more than a month and a half. Balochistan has witnessed an uptick in terrorist attacks over the past year. In November 2024, at least 26 people were killed and 62 injured after a suicide blast ripped through a Quetta Railway Station. The oil and mineral-rich Balochistan is Pakistan's largest but least populated province. Balochistan, bordering Iran and Afghanistan, is home to a long-running violent insurgency. Baloch insurgent groups frequently carry out attacks targeting security personnel, government projects and the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects in the region. 

On Tuesday, the insurgents opened fire on the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express, carrying 425 passengers in nine bogies, while it was passing through the Mashkaf tunnel near the mountainous terrain of Gudalar and Piru Kunri. The train was coming from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan.  A day later, a Pakistani Army spokesperson announced that the operation to rescue hostages from the  train hijacked by the Baloch insurgents had ended and all 33 militants present at the scene were killed. The spokesperson also said that 21 passengers and four Pakistani Army personnel had died during the security operation. 

However the reports were challenged by the  Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) who on Thursday called the Pakistani military's claim related to the Jaffar Express hijacking a "lie", and said that intense fighting was continuing and the Pak forces were suffering heavy losses. "The ground reality is that the battle continues on multiple fronts, and the enemy (Pakistani military) is suffering heavy casualties and military losses," the BLA said in a statement. 

The Jaffar Express is named after Mir Jaffar Khan Jamali,  a prominent Baloch tribal leader, active member of the Pakistan Movement, and a close friend of the Mohammad Ali Jinnah. He was the uncle of former Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali. The train was inaugurated by the Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali  in Apr 2003.   Mir Jaffar was an associate of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, and  belonged to the Jamali tribe, a powerful and influential Baloch tribe. He actively participated in the struggle for the creation of Pakistan and independence of Pakistan in 1947.  Mir Jafar Khan Jamali led delegations of notable political figures from Baluchistan to the All India Muslim League's annual sessions in Madras (1939), Lahore (1940), Karachi (1941), Allahabad (1942), and Delhi (1943).

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
13.3.2025