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Express Tribune
3 days ago
- General
- Express Tribune
4,150 tonnes of animal waste collected
Deputy Commissioner (DC) Muhammad Ashraf appreciated the district administration's arrangements for ensuring cleanliness in the district on the occasion of Eidul Azha. While talking to media persons in his office, he said under the "Suthra Punjab Program" the administration collected 4,150 tones animal waste and shifted it to the dumping sites effectively. The deputy commissioner said over 1,400 sanitary workers participated in cleanliness drives on the occasion of the Eid. He announced special package for the sanitary worker for their efforts to make cleanliness drive a success and ordered to pay their arrears on urgent basis. The district administration addressed over 1,100 complaints.
Gulf Insider
13-03-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
Pakistani Separatists Attack Train With Over 400 People
One of the most brazen terror attacks and hostage standoffs the world has ever seen played out on Tuesday into Wednesday. The shocking incident in Pakistan's restive southwestern region involved a separatist Islamist group attacking and taking control of a large passenger train. Some 450 passengers were travelling on the train from Quetta to Peshawar when it was attacked Tuesday by militants of the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). The group took a number of hostages after halting the train. Many bystanders are still missing. Soon after the train had entered a tunnel, 'intense gunfire' was unleashed by the militants. There had actually ben over 100 passengers on the train who were members of Pakistani security forces, but it's unclear whether many of these personnel were armed at the time. One eyewitness who was able to escape the mayhem, Muhammad Ashraf, described to BBC: 'There was a lot of fear among the passengers. It was a scene of doomsday.' Pakistani special forces were among the first to respond to the scene, also amid helicopter cover overhead, and a shootout ensued. But it ended in tragedy. While at least 35 militants were killed, some 100 civilians were reportedly executed by the terrorists. The hunt for the remaining attackers appears to still be ongoing, as many of the gunmen fled into the nearby mountains. Baloch insurgents in Pakistan's Balochistan province have shared a video showing how they blew up a train track to derail a Peshawar-bound passenger train before taking the passengers hostage.#PakistanTrainHijack — The Tatva (@thetatvaindia) March 12, 2025 Click here to read more Also read: Pakistani Expat Sentenced to 6 Months in Prison for Commercial Cover-up
Saudi Gazette
13-03-2025
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Pakistan army says 300 hostages freed from train seized by militants
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan's army says it has freed more than 300 hostages from a passenger train seized by militants in Balochistan province on Tuesday. The military spokesperson said 33 militants were killed during the operation. Twenty-one civilian hostages and four military personnel were killed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) before the operation began, the military spokesperson said. The military continues its search operation in the area to rule out any remaining threats. There were approximately 440 passengers on board the train when it was attacked, according to the army's spokesperson. Security officials have been quoted as saying some of the militants may have left the train, taking an unknown number of passengers with them into the surrounding mountainous area. The military is working to find the passengers who escaped and fled into the surrounding area during the attack, the spokesperson said. It is not clear how many passengers are unaccounted for. The Pakistani authorities — as well as several Western countries, including the UK and US — have designated the BLA as a terrorist organization. The BLA is one of the rebel groups demanding either greater autonomy or independence for Balochistan, Pakistan's largest province. They accuse Islamabad of exploiting the province's rich mineral resources while also neglecting it. In the past, they have attacked military camps, railway stations and trains — but this is the first time they have hijacked a train. At least 100 of those on the train were members of the security forces, officials have said. The militants had threatened to kill hostages if authorities did not release Baloch political prisoners within 48 hours, according to local reports. During the attack, the militants blew up a section of the tracks and opened fire on the train near a mountain tunnel. Eyewitnesses described the "doomsday scenes" on board the train as the attack unfolded, with passenger Ishaq Noor telling the BBC: "We held our breath throughout the firing, not knowing what would happen next." Officials had difficulty communicating with passengers at the time of the attack, because the remote area has no internet or mobile coverage. Some passengers who managed to disembark from the train late on Tuesday evening walked for nearly four hours to reach the next railway station. Among them was Muhammad Ashraf, who had been travelling from Quetta to Lahore to visit his family. "We reached the station with great difficulty, because we were tired and there were children and women with us," he told the BBC. Helicopters and hundreds of troops were deployed to rescue the hostages. More than 100 passengers had been freed by Wednesday morning. The hijacking lasted more than 30 hours. Information relating to the attack and subsequent rescue operation has been tightly controlled throughout. A spokesperson for the military said anyone involved in the attack would be brought to justice. — BBC
Dubai Eye
13-03-2025
- Politics
- Dubai Eye
Hijackers making Pakistan hostage rescue complicated, source says
Hijackers being seated next to some of the scores of passengers taken hostage after insurgents took control of a train in southwest Pakistan, has complicating rescue efforts, security sources said on Wednesday. About 50 separatist insurgents blew up a railway track and lobbed rockets at the Jaffar Express on Tuesday, which had over 400 people on board, a security official said. Hundreds of troops and teams in helicopters have mounted an operation to rescue hostages in the remote mountainous area where the train has been stopped. The government said it has so far rescued 155 passengers. There was no official word on how many people remained in the captivity of the militants. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), an ethnic armed group that claimed responsibility for the attack, said on Tuesday it was holding 214 people hostage. "People were attacked ... passengers were injured and some passengers died," said Muhammad Ashraf, who was on the train. The train was trapped in a tunnel and the driver was killed after sustaining serious injuries, police and railway officials said. The BLA has threatened to start executing hostages unless Baloch political prisoners, activists, and missing persons it said had been abducted by the military were released within 48 hours. The group shared a message from one of its fighters on the train calling on people in Balochistan to join their fight against the Pakistani state. "Comrades are shedding their blood for you, for this motherland," the man said in the message, posted on Telegram. A security source told Reuters that there were 425 passengers on the train when it was attacked on its way from Quetta, Balochistan's capital city, to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The security source said that after taking control of the train, the insurgents began pulling passengers off and checking their identification. "They were looking for soldiers and security personnel," the official said, adding that at least 11 people, including paramilitary troops, had been killed so far. BLA is the largest of several ethnic armed groups battling Pakistan's government in the mineral-rich province of Balochistan, bordering Afghanistan and Iran. The security source said on Wednesday that 27 BLA fighters had been killed so far in the military operation. On Tuesday, the BLA denied any of its members were killed.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pakistan army says 300 hostages freed from train
Pakistan's army says it has freed more than 300 hostages from a passenger train seized by militants in Balochistan province on Tuesday. The military spokesperson said 33 militants were killed during the operation. Twenty-one civilian hostages and four military personnel were killed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) before the operation began, the military spokesperson said. The military continues its search operation in the area to rule out any remaining threats. The Pakistani authorities - as well as several Western countries, including the UK and US - have designated the BLA as a terrorist organisation. The BLA is one of the rebel groups demanding either greater autonomy or independence for Balochistan, Pakistan's largest province. They accuse Islamabad of exploiting the province's rich mineral resources while also neglecting it. In the past, they have attacked military camps, railway stations and trains - but this is the first time they have hijacked a train. At least 100 of those on the train were members of the security forces, officials have said. The militants had threatened to kill hostages if authorities did not release Baloch political prisoners within 48 hours, according to local reports. During the attack, the militants blew up a section of the tracks and opened fire on the train near a mountain tunnel. Eyewitnesses described the "doomsday scenes" on board the train as the attack unfolded, with passenger Ishaq Noor telling the BBC: "We held our breath throughout the firing, not knowing what would happen next." Officials had difficulty communicating with passengers at the time of the attack, because the remote area has no internet or mobile coverage. Some passengers who managed to disembark from the train late on Tuesday evening walked for nearly four hours to reach the next railway station. Among them was Muhammad Ashraf, who had been travelling from Quetta to Lahore to visit his family. "We reached the station with great difficulty, because we were tired and there were children and women with us," he told the BBC. Helicopters and hundreds of troops were deployed to rescue the hostages. More than 100 passengers had been freed by Wednesday morning. The hijacking lasted more than 30 hours. A spokesperson for the military said anyone involved in the attack would be brought to justice. Passengers describe 'doomsday scenes' on hijacked train At least 100 passengers freed from Pakistan train siege
