According to Xinhua, on March 11, a passenger train carrying at least 450 people was attacked by armed militants while passing through a tunnel in Balochistan, Pakistan, resulting in a large number of passengers being taken hostage.
On March 12, Pakistani military officials reported that security forces had rescued 104 hostages from the attacked train, although a significant number of hostages remained in the hands of the militants. The rescued individuals include 58 men, 31 women, and 15 children, with 17 injured passengers urgently sent to the hospital for treatment. Intense firefights between security forces and militants continue, with reports indicating that 16 militants have been killed. The military is dispatching additional personnel to support the rescue operation, though no casualty figures for security personnel have been released.
The report states that those still held captive include train crew members and military passengers, with the militants having made political demands as conditions for releasing the hostages. There have been no reports of casualties among Chinese citizens in this incident.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a statement strongly condemning the attack and expressed full support for security forces in their counter-terrorism efforts to thwart the militants' attempts to create chaos in the country.
The Baloch Liberation Army has claimed responsibility for the attack.
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