Hijacked, Humiliated and Exposed: Watch BLA's Stunning Video That Shreds Pakistan's Lies in Balochistan
New Delhi: Damning truth has emerged two months after Pakistan force-fed its narrative to the world. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a rebel group fighting for Balochistan's freedom from Pakistan's control, has released a 35-minute video – which demolished Islamabad's account of events surrounding the hijacking of the Jaffar Express on March 11.
This was not a skirmish. It was a high impact and sophisticated operation – codenamed 'Darra-e-Bolan 2.0 – that sent a shockwave across the Pakistani establishment.
With 450 people on board, the train was hijacked by BLA fighters who first blew up the rail tracks in Balochistan. They literally held Pakistan and its military establishment hostage during the two-day siege. More than 200 officials, who included personnel from armed forces, police and other government departments, were held hostage and the 'invincible' state was left scrambling in panic.
Ever ready to paper over its failures, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), describing the incident a 'barbaric bloodbath', claimed the BLA rebels suffered heavy casualties. However, the recent video tells a completely different story.
The clip reveals a disciplined, calculated and calm operation. It shows the storming of the train – from pre-mission briefings to combat training. The footage showcases the elite fidayeen unit of the BLA carrying out a textbook mission. Elderly, children and women passengers can be seen being safely evacuated – busting Pakistan's propaganda that the BLA acted indiscriminately.
Echoing the determination and desperation of a people crushed under decades of Pakistan military oppression, the video starts with a powerful statement, 'Our struggle and war has come to a point where we are to take such critical decisions…. A gun is needed to halt the gun.'
Monitoring:
Baloch Liberation Army media #Hakkal published video of the #JaffarExpress Hijack (Operation Darra-E-Bolan 2.0)#Balochistan pic.twitter.com/ClxM6VIOsy — Bahot | باہوٹ (@bahot_baluch) May 18, 2025
It was not a rhetoric. With every man briefed on his objective and positioning, the BLA fidaeen fighters being prepped for war. There were not just rogue elements; they were trained insurgents with a clear mission – deliver a brutal message to the occupying Pakistani state.
Pakistan had claimed that the security forces killed 33 rebels during the siege – which ended in 30 hours. However, the BLA says it eliminated all 214 Pakistani military hostages who were captured during the hijack that is considered to be a devastating blow to Pakistan's credibility and control in Balochistan.
The BLA doubled down while Pakistan tried to bury the operation under lies – showing messages, names and faces of its Majeed Brigade – which had carried out the attack. They emerged prepared for more, proud and defiant – far from being decimated.
More than a documentation of an operation, the video footage is a public relations nightmare for Pakistan. It is a reminder that Balochistan is not silent and that the people of Balochistan are far from defeated.
The footage is explosive, not just in content but in consequences, for a state built on militarised control, forced disappearances and censorship.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
33 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Pakistan boosts defence budget by 20% but slashes overall spending in 2025-26
Pakistan will raise defence spending by a steep 20% after a military clash with its old enemy India last month, but will slash overall federal expenditure for fiscal 2025-26 by a hefty 7% to 17.57 trillion rupees ($62 billion). The budget presented on Tuesday by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government allocated 2.55 trillion rupees ($9 billion) to defence in July-June 2025-26, up from 2.12 trillion. It projected a deficit of 3.9% of GDP against the 5.9% targeted for 2024-25. Inflation was projected at 7.5% and growth at 4.2%. The South Asian nation wants to kickstart growth while boosting its defences after the worst fighting with its neighbour in nearly three decades – which it has cast as a victory – and meeting the strictures of an International Monetary Fund finance programme. 'After defeating India in a conventional war, now we have to surpass it in the economic field,' Sharif said in a statement. Pakistan must also contend with the uncertainty of new import tariffs being imposed by the United States, its biggest export market. The clash with India was sparked in April by Islamists who killed 26 men in an attack on Hindu tourists in Indian Kashmir. Islamabad denied New Delhi's allegation that the militants were backed by Pakistan. Four days of fighting featured jets, missiles, drones and artillery. For the coming year, Pakistan's government allocated 742 billion Pakistani rupees ($2.63 billion) to military pensions, taking the entire defence budget to 3.292 trillion Pakistani rupees ($11.67 billion). That included 704 billion Pakistani rupees ($2.5 billion) in spending on equipment and other physical assets. India's defence spending in its 2025–26 (April-March) fiscal year was set at $78.7 billion, up 9.5%, including pensions and $21 billion earmarked for equipment. It has indicated that it too will boost defence spending further. Sharif's government has projected 4.2% economic growth in 2025-26, saying it has steadied the economy, which looked at risk of defaulting on its debts as recently as 2023. Growth this fiscal year is likely to be 2.7%, against the budgeted target of 3.6%. Pakistan's growth lags far behind the region. In 2024, South Asian countries grew by an average of 5.8% and the Asian Development Bank expects 6.0% in 2025. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the government intended to complete the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines, a request of the IMF. Growth should be aided by a sharp drop in the cost of borrowing, the government says, after a succession of interest rate cuts. But economists warn that monetary policy alone may not be enough, with fiscal constraints and IMF-mandated reforms still weighing on investment. Aurangzeb said that the budget was the start of a strategy to boost exports, increase foreign currency reserves to avoid the balance of payments crises of the past, and create a more competitive economy. 'In short, our budget strategy is to change the economy's DNA by bringing basic changes,' he said.
India Gazette
2 hours ago
- India Gazette
"We actually got them to reverse the stand they had taken": Shashi Tharoor on Colombia withdrawing statement condoling Pak deaths in Op Sindoor
New Delhi [India], June 10 (ANI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who led a five-member all-party delegation to Colombia, on Tuesday praised the success of their diplomatic efforts. Tharoor highlighted a significant achievement where the Colombian government reversed its initial stance on Operation Sindoor, a move that was seen as favourable to Pakistan. Tharoor highlighted the strong understanding and rapport built with parliamentarians during the visit, which contributed to the success of the diplomatic efforts. Following discussions with Tharoor's delegation, the Acting Foreign Minister of Colombia publicly acknowledged support for India's stand. 'Each of these meetings was very good. In Colombia, one positive thing for us was that we actually got them to reverse the stand they had taken, perhaps without enough thought. When #OperationSindoor started, they had issued a statement expressing heartfelt condolences for the Pakistani victims, having lost sight of the context. Once we had explained all that, they withdrew their statement. The statement was on record for a couple of weeks, but it was taken down as soon as we raised the issue, and subsequently, we got the Acting Foreign Minister to speak to the media and acknowledge their support for our stand, and we had told them. So, all of that went very well. I think particularly, with Parliamentarians everywhere, the level of understanding was first class...,' said Tharoor. Tharoor attributed the success to effective communication and building understanding with the Colombian officials. A private dinner hosted by a former Colombian ambassador allowed Tharoor's delegation to express their concerns and clarify India's position. The Colombian government quickly responded to India's concerns, withdrawing the statement immediately after Tharoor's opening remarks. 'We should talk to people and make them understand. We had a press conference when we arrived, so I sent a signal that we are very disappointed. Then, on the same night, we had a private dinner hosted by an ex-ambassador of Colombia. He hosted a dinner for us, where the Asia director of the Foreign Ministry was also present. So we told them it was not right that you did this, and they understood our problem. The next day was our formal meeting. So before the formal meeting, they talked and made people understand; hence, immediately after my opening remarks, they immediately replied that we were withdrawing it (statement),' said Tharoor. Tharoor's delegation received a warm welcome in Colombia and other countries they visited. They had high-quality meetings with senior officials, including presidents, prime ministers, and vice presidents. The delegation's message was well-received, and many interlocutors respected India's restraint in the face of provocation. Speaking about his delegation's visit, Tharoor said, 'We were all very pleased with how the five countries went through to receive us. We had good results everywhere-- high-quality meetings-- president, prime minister, vice presidents, very senior interlocutors everywhere and at the same time they there was a complete understanding and support for a position on why this whole thing had been triggered off in Pahalgam, what our reaction had to be. In fact, many of the people we spoke to specifically expressed respect for the restraint we have shown in our reaction.' Tharoor expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the delegation's visit, stating that they had fulfilled their purpose of demonstrating India's unity across political lines and delivering an effective message to government officials, legislators, think tanks, media, and the diaspora 'I would say that we have come out of this extreme well. As far as the government is concerned I think the purpose of sending MPs to both demonstrate the Unity of India across political lines and the same time to deliver an effective message to government officials, legislators think tanks and opinion makers as well as media and where appropriate, the diaspora, all of this was very thoroughly fulfilled so I would say that touchwood we have done what they used to do and that way coming home reasonably exhausted and reasonably happy,' he said. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor led the all-party delegation which included Shambhavi Chaudhary (Lok Janshakti Party), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha), G M Harish Balayogi (Telugu Desam Party), Shashank Mani Tripathi, Tejaswi Surya, and Bhubaneswar Kalita (all from the BJP), Mallikarjun Devda (Shiv Sena), former Indian Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu, and Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora. This diplomatic effort formed a part of India's global outreach following Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 in response to the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam by Pakistan-sponsored militants that claimed 26 lives and injured several others. Subsequently, the Indian Armed Forces carried out targeted strikes against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in the deaths of over 100 terrorists linked to groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen. (ANI)
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
‘He was very pleasant': What Tharoor said on meet with Modi over Op Sindoor outreach task
Shashi Tharoor, leaders of one of the seven Operation Sindoor outreach all-party delegations that recently wrapped their whirlwind multi-country visits, said the teams' meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday was informal and 'lively'. Members of the seven all-party delegations that visited several countries met PM Modi on Tuesday and briefed him about the anti-terror outreach that followed India's Operation Sindoor military strikes on Pakistani and PoK terror infrastructure, a retaliatory action over the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack that left 26 civilians dead. After meeting PM Modi, Shashi Tharoor described him as 'very pleasant' to all the leaders and sent the prime minister spent over an hour with all of them. 'He was certainly very pleasant to all of us. He saw this as an opportunity to thank the delegations for their service, and he was very pleasant and spent more than an hour with all of us. He walked around the lawn to different tables, talking to different groups of people,' Shashi Tharoor said after the meeting. Shashi Tharoor said all leaders chatted with PM Modi 'in an informal way'. "It wasn't a formal meeting at all. It was a good, lively, informal meeting. Even those of us who had given him our reports on the trip did not present those reports. We all shared many things with him, and with time, it will be apparent. A general proposition I noticed was that every country said it was a very good idea for Members of Parliament to visit them. We all suggested that we should make this a practice more often. The PM certainly seem to take that idea onboard," Tharoor added. PM Modi said that the country is proud of the manner in which the delegations put forward India's voice. 'Met members of the various delegations who represented India in different countries and elaborated on India's commitment to peace and the need to eradicate the menace of terrorism. We are all proud of the manner in which they put forward India's voice,' PM Modi said on X after meeting the delegations.
