The BLA, a separatist group seeking Balochistan’s independence from Pakistan, hijacked the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express on Tuesday after destroying railway tracks.

Baloch separatists who hijacked a Pakistani passenger train claimed to have executed all 214 military hostages after their deadline to exchange them for Baloch political prisoners expired. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) accused the Pakistani government of ignoring their ultimatum,

The BLA said they gave the Pakistan Army 48 hours to exchange prisoners of war, but since they did not heed their warning, they killed the hostages

Home to about 15 million of Pakistan’s estimated 240 million people, according to the 2023 census, Balochistan remains the country’s poorest region despite being rich in natural resources such as coal, gold, copper, and gas. These resources generate substantial revenue for the federal government.

Nearly 350 hostages were rescued at the end of a deadly standoff between Pakistan’s military and armed militants who hijacked a train in the southwestern Pakistani province of Balochistan, a security source told CNN Wednesday.

The Jaffar Express, with some 400 passengers on board in nine bogies, was on its way from Quetta in Pakistan's to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Pakistan’s prime minister has commended the country’s armed forces for successfully rescuing 339 passengers after a deadly train hijacking by insurgents in the southwest

Pakistan authorities announced the elimination of 33 militants who attacked a passenger train and the rescue of all remaining hostages, reports AP News. Armed fighters from the separatist group Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) attacked the Jafer Express train traveling from Quetta to Peshawar.