UPDATE 2 - Militants fire at train in SW Pakistan, claim to have taken 182 passengers hostage

UPDATES WITH RELEASE OF HOSTAGES, CHANGES HEADER, LEDE, AND DECK

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) - A gun battle was underway between security forces and heavily armed militants who claimed to have taken 182 passengers hostage after attacking a train in southwestern Pakistan on Tuesday.

The outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), in a statement to local media, claimed responsibility for the brazen attack.

The militant network initially claimed to have taken over 100 passengers, including security personnel, hostage, but later put the number at 182.

Militants have freed some 70 hostages, mainly women and children, who have reached a nearby railway station, Imran Hayat, a senior Pakistan Railways official, told Anadolu.

"Security forces backed by helicopters have cordoned off the site, and efforts are underway to get remaining hostages freed," he added.

Unconfirmed reports said that at least 10 people, including the train driver, have been killed in the ambush.

Security sources confirmed the incident, saying the hostages included women and children.

The security operation will continue till the "elimination of the last terrorist," they added.

However, there was no official word on casualties.

The incident occurred in a hilly area of the remote Bolan district in the southwestern Balochistan province when a group of militants detonated bombs on the railway track and opened fire on the Jaffar Express, which was heading to northwestern Peshawar city from the provincial capital, Quetta.

Shahid Rind, a spokesman for the Balochistan government, told reporters that additional troops have been dispatched to the site, where security forces are already engaged in a gun battle with the attackers.

Muhammad Kashif, another railway official, said the train, which is being held just outside a tunnel, comprises nine coaches, with around 500 passengers on board.

An emergency has been imposed at the nearby hospitals while ambulances and security forces were on their way to the site of the incident.

The BLA and some other groups have long been involved in attacks on security forces and citizens from other provinces.

They have been fighting for the "liberation" of Balochistan, which they contend was forcibly incorporated into Pakistan following the end of British colonial rule in united India in 1947.

Condemning the attack, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said: “The beasts who fire on innocent passengers do not deserve any concessions.”