‘Mistook us for useless’: Pakistan train driver recalls 36-hour terror siege

The driver of the Jaffar Express recalled the hours of terror when militants from the Balochistan Liberation Army attacked the train which claimed lives of 21 civilians and 4 troopers.
Speaking after the assault, loco-pilot Amjad described how the BLA militants detonated an explosive below the train’s engine, which led to the derailment of the train.
“The terrorists breached the train by smashing windows, but they mistakenly believed we were dead,” Amjad informed information company Reuters.
“As soon as the train stopped, Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) terrorists launched an attack,” he added.
Meanwhile, one of many freed passengers recalled how the attackers took them hostage after the blast.
“They held us at gunpoint, but the commandos risked their own lives to rescue us,” he stated, including that the navy’s braveness gave them energy through the ordeal.
Pakistan’s navy declared an finish to the Jaffar Express hostage disaster after a two-day standoff.
Also learn: ‘Killed in entrance of our eyes’: Survivors reveal how the 36-hour Pakistan train hijacking unfolded
The Pakistan military on Wednesday night time stated that every one 33 attackers have been killed, and greater than 340 train passengers have been freed after a fierce operation in southwest Balochistan, the place the train had been ambushed a day earlier.
However, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) refuted the Pakistan navy’s declare and asserted that it nonetheless holds hostages and stays engaged in battle with safety forces.
BLA accused the navy of deceptive the general public and stated the hostages claimed to have been rescued by Pakistan’s forces have been really launched by the BLA.
“Now that the state has abandoned its hostages to die, it will also bear responsibility for their deaths,” BLA spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch stated in an announcement.
Meanwhile, Pakistan prime minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Balochistan the place he reviewed the safety scenario and expressed solidarity with the victims of the assault. He condemned the rising risk of militancy, calling it an existential hazard to Pkistan.
“Pakistan’s peace and prosperity are linked with eradicating terrorism. There will be no prosperity without peace,” he stated at a high-level assembly.
Death toll figures have various, with the navy reporting that “21 innocent hostages” and 4 troopers have been killed within the operation.
However, a railway official in Balochistan stated that 25 our bodies have been retrieved from the scene and transported to the close by city of Mach. “Deceased were identified as 19 military passengers, one police and one railway official, while four bodies are yet to be identified,” an nameless railway official informed AFP.