PAKISTAN All hostages freed in train siege

More than 340 train passengers taken hostage by a militant group were freed Wednesday by security forces after a 30-hour siege, an army official told AFP, confirming that 27 off-duty soldiers were shot by militants. Pakistan security forces launched a rescue mission Tuesday afternoon after a separatist group bombed a railway track in mountainous southwest […]

More than 340 train passengers taken hostage by a militant group were freed Wednesday by security forces after a 30-hour siege, an army official told AFP, confirming that 27 off-duty soldiers were shot by militants.

Pakistan security forces launched a rescue mission Tuesday afternoon after a separatist group bombed a railway track in mountainous southwest Balochistan and stormed a train with around 450 passengers on board.

“346 hostages were freed and over 30 terrorists were killed during the operation,” an army official told AFP on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

The 27 slain soldiers had been travelling on the train as passengers, the army official said. One on-duty soldier was killed in the clearance operation.

The official did not give a civilian death toll, but earlier a railway official and paramedic said the train driver and a police officer had been killed.

The assault was immediately claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), which released a video of an explosion on the track followed by dozens of militants emerging from hiding places in the mountains.