Pakistan PM Visits Jaffar Express Attack Survivors, Military Demands Action from Afghanistan

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Balochistan on Thursday to meet survivors of the deadly Jaffar Express attack and commend the commandos who led a high-risk rescue operation, saving over 300 passengers from separatist militants.

Military officials disclosed that the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) militants remained in direct communication with their leadership in Afghanistan throughout the siege via satellite phone. The Pakistani military has called on the Afghan Taliban government to prevent its territory from being used for cross-border terrorist activities—an allegation that Kabul has repeatedly denied.

Rescue Operation and Aftermath

The military’s response involved coordinated efforts from the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Special Services Group (SSG), Pakistan Army, and Frontier Corps (FC). Military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry emphasized the swift and decisive action taken by security forces to neutralize the militants and rescue hostages. “This incident changes the rules of the game,” Chaudhry declared, underscoring that such acts of terror would not be tolerated.

Eyewitnesses recounted the harrowing ordeal. Muhammad Naveed, a survivor, described how the attackers initially claimed no harm would come to passengers but then selected victims for execution. “They asked us to come outside, saying we would not be harmed. Then they chose people and shot them down,” he recalled.

Babar Masih, a Christian laborer, detailed how the militants spared women and elderly passengers after pleas from their families. “Our women pleaded with them, and they spared us,” he said.

The attack underscores escalating security concerns in Balochistan, with Pakistani authorities vowing a firm response against militant groups operating along the country’s borders.