Pakistan Military Says It Kills All 33 Militants Who Hijacked Train, Ending Standoff

Pakistani security forces stormed a hijacked train on March 12, ending a day-long standoff with separatist militants. The attackers, Baloch separatist militants, had hijacked the Jaffar Express on March 11 after blowing up the railway track, launching rockets at the train. The train was traveling from Quetta to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The military confirmed that 33 militants and 21 hostages were killed in the operation, which involved 440 passengers. The operation was carried out carefully, with no civilian casualties reported. BLA which claimed responsibility for attack, is the largest ethnic armed group fighting for greater control over Balochistan's resources. The militants have in recent months stepped up their activities using new tactics to inflict high death and injury tolls and target Pakistan's military. The BLA has been escalating its attacks with new tactics targeting Pakistan's military and infrastructure.