Pakistan’s Jaffar Express derails after blast in Balochistan’s Mastung

Pakistan’s Jaffar Express, a passenger train, was derailed on Tuesday after an explosion rocked the track in Mastung’s Dasht area of Balochistan. The blast according to various media reports, caused multiple coaches to overturn, trapping passengers. Visuals now going viral on social media show frantic rescue efforts as emergency teams work to pull people out from the wreckage. As of now, at least three coaches are said to have been affected by the explosion. However, the exact number of casualties remains unclear.

(The video is based on user-generated content from social media. India TV has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)

Bomb blasts in Jaffar Express 

This comes a month after a bomb blast on railway track in Balochistan’s Mastung district derailed six bogies of the Jaffar Express. Muhammad Kashif, public relations officer of the Pakistan Railways’ Quetta division, told Dawn.com, “A bomb attached to the railway track exploded loudly, derailing six bogies of the train. Fortunately, there was no loss of life.”  The incident had occurred near the Spezand station in Mastung’s Dasht tehsil, when the train was heading from Quetta to Peshawar City station with 350 passengers on board, Dawn added. 

“Security forces and rescue teams rushed to the site as soon as they were alerted about the incident and began a search operation after cordoning off the area,” Kashif said, according to Dawn. He further noted, “Four bogies of the Jaffar Express had been placed back on the track, while efforts were underway to restore the other two.” 

Earlier this year, the Jaffar Express was reportedly targeted in a deadly insurgent attack by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), resulting in the deaths of 25 people and injuries to over 50 others.

According to reports, fighters from the BLA including operatives from its Majid Brigade, Fateh Squad, and Special Tactical Operations Squad allegedly bombed a section of the railway track before engaging Pakistani security forces. The group then reportedly seized control of the Peshawar-bound train, taking hundreds of passengers hostage. The incident, dubbed “Operation Darra-e-Bolan 2.0” by the BLA, unfolded in the Bolan region of Balochistan and was widely seen as a major security failure for the Pakistani authorities.

Bodies of at least 25 people, including 21 hostages, were later recovered from the hijack site. The BLA claimed responsibility, accusing the Pakistani state of carrying out extrajudicial killings in Balochistan and pushing the province towards devastation. One BLA fighter also criticized the United Nations and global human rights organisations for their silence on what he called the “genocide” of the Baloch people.

In a related incident last week, a Quetta-bound Jaffar Express reportedly avoided a major tragedy when a bomb exploded near the track shortly after the train passed Sibi Railway Station. The blast damaged a portion of the track, but the train and its passengers remained unharmed, according to Dawn.