"I had to say goodbye to my father at the station, a man who is battling heart disease. As I watched him walk away, the weight of uncertainty settled in my chest, knowing that each moment together is a precious gift,” said Rana Abdul Rauf, a resident of Quetta who had been waiting for his father for the past 24 hours outside the Quetta Railway Station.
Rauf’s father was among the hostages taken by the Baloch Liberation Army during a train hijacking in the province. “My heart ached with the fear of what lies ahead, wishing I could hold onto him just a little longer,” he told The Friday Times.
On 11 March, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA-Jeeyand), led by Bashir Zaib Baloch—a student leader turned commander of the group—claimed to have seized control of a Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express in the rugged hilly areas of Bolan, Dhadar district.
Waheed, a passenger on the train, recounted his harrowing experience, stating that he was asleep when armed assailants stormed the train and took control. He described how the attackers meticulously verified the identities of the passengers before ultimately releasing them. After the ordeal, Waheed managed to reach safety by traveling on foot for several hours last night.
According to a statement released by the BLA regarding the attack, the group’s suicide bomber squad, another unit trained in hostage-taking and specialised in combat operations—the Special Tactical Operation Squad (STOS)—its guerrilla unit, the Fatah Squad, and its Intelligence Research Analysis Bureau (ZIRAB) all participated in the operation.
Moreover, in another statement, the group stated that its suicide squad, the Majeed Brigade, was leading the train hijacking operation.
In the past two months, there has been a noticeable increase in the targeting of communication lines, particularly along National Highways, by militants. Shahid Rind, the spokesperson for the Balochistan Government, confirmed that the highways have been blocked eighty times due to ongoing protests demanding the release of enforced disappearances in the province, as well as actions by Baloch armed groups.
As the uncertainty surrounding travel routes persists, the people of the province and low-ranking officials can hardly afford pricey air tickets to travel safely for inter-provincial journeys.
Trains remain the only means of transportation in the impoverished province, as security officials regularly inspect the railway tracks from the Kolhapur area to Mastung and Jacobabad in the Sindh province. Along these railway routes, small contingents of the Frontier Corps (FC) are deployed to ensure the safety of the tracks.
Over the years, publications from Baloch militant groups indicate that an intensive research team operates within these armed factions. These research publications frequently release articles on various topics
Despite these stringent security measures, railway stations and tracks are frequently targeted by Baloch armed groups. In November of last year, the Majeed Brigade of the BLA carried out a suicide attack at the Quetta Railway Station, killing 26 people. This station is located just ten to fifteen minutes away on foot from the Red Zone of the provincial capital.
The Jaffar Express has frequently been targeted by Baloch armed groups. In a specific attack in November, a suicide attacker from the BLA’s Majeed Brigade struck again, resulting in the deaths of 26 individuals, the majority of whom were security personnel.
Train tragedy
In the train hijacking episode, the Jaffar Express, en route to Peshawar and connecting all four provinces of Pakistan, was derailed in an explosion near a tunnel in the Mushkaf area of the Dhadar district. The train was carrying 470 passengers. The security forces present on the train resisted for about an hour but were eventually overpowered by BLA fighters, who were larger in number and better equipped.
The situation regarding the hostages remained unclear for most of the time. However, the military’s spokesperson, DG ISPR Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chauhdary, confirmed on Wednesday night that all the hostages were safe, 33 terrorists were killed in the clearance operation, and 26 people—including 18 security personnel traveling on the train, 5 others, and 4 security personnel—were killed during the engagement. However, the BLA, in its last statement regarding the train hostages, claimed to have killed 214 hostages, mostly security personnel, in response to military actions. Moreover, it also confirmed that 12 fighters of the group were killed, including five suicide attackers from the Majeed Brigade. “Operation is continued,” read the statement.
BLA demands and hostage-taking modus operandi
After taking control of the train, the BLA initially stated that it had taken 100 hostages, but later the number exceeded 214. They also expressed readiness for a ‘prisoner swap’ in a statement and demanded the “unconditional release of Baloch political prisoners, forcibly disappeared persons, and national resistance activists.”
The hijacking of the Jaffar Express is one of the largest hostage-taking actions by the BLA in the ongoing insurgency in the province. Moreover, the trend of hostage-taking by the BLA suggests a pattern of escalating violence. In July 2022, Lt. Col. Laiq Baig Mirza, a serving military personnel, was abducted by Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) fighters. His body was recovered two days later.
In October 2023, the BLA took two Frontier Corps (FC) personnel hostage after unloading them from a passenger van in the Margat area of Bolan.
In April 2024, the BLA took seven people hostage from the Shabhan area of Quetta. In a separate incident, the Baloch Liberation Tigers (BLT) abducted six sportsmen in the Dera Bugti area of Balochistan. Security forces launched a large-scale operation but were unable to recover anyone. However, due to the influence of local residents, the players returned home safely. Unfortunately, the individuals taken hostage by the BLA in the Shabhan area were later killed, as they were not recovered by law enforcement agencies.
The recent events in the Baloch insurgency highlight the increasing sophistication and capacity of groups like the BLA and BLT to abduct security personnel in significant numbers. This trend underscores a troubling escalation in violence and a growing disregard for human life, raising serious concerns about the security situation in the region.
Growing capabilities of the armed group
In a complex operational landscape, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) employs a diverse range of tactics to monitor the movements of security personnel and analyse intelligence. This was evident during the Karachi airport attack and the suicide bombing at Quetta Railway Station, where the attack was deliberately postponed by a day to maximise its impact based on gathered intelligence. Similarly, in the train hijacking incident, the group effectively combined kinetic operations with media strategies to enhance their overall impact.
Technicians within the BLA utilise advanced technological tools for surveillance, communication, and data analysis, ensuring that their intelligence operations are both efficient and effective. This approach was particularly evident in an attack on a Frontier Corps (FC) post in the Wali Tangi area of Quetta, where the group employed drone surveillance to assess the presence of personnel at the targeted site. During the ensuing exchange of fire, security forces killed a man named Shahid Dur Bibi, a computer science graduate from the International Islamic University in Islamabad, in 2023. This incident underscores the increasing significance of technical expertise in modern conflict.
Over the years, publications from Baloch militant groups indicate that an intensive research team operates within these armed factions. These research publications frequently release articles on various topics, particularly focusing on safe practices for using different social media platforms while ensuring operational security. The researchers also investigate the casualties suffered by security forces and subsequently publish this information to strengthen their claims.
These professionals create a comprehensive framework that supports their guerrilla tactics, emphasising the importance of collaboration and expertise in the ever-evolving field of intelligence. In contrast to other incidents, the train hijacking saw the release of a limited number of statements, audio, and video clips to make their narrative stronger. This contrasts with other attacks, where the groups often release extensive information to amplify their message and assert their influence.