27 hostages killed after hijacked Pakistan train rescue ends in bloodbath

Quetta, Pakistan CNN —

Nearly 350 hostages have been 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 incident, which began Tuesday left dozens dead.

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a militant separatist group active in the restive and mineral-rich Balochistan province, claimed responsibility for the attack.

A total of 27 hostages were killed by the BLA, the security source said, as well as one soldier. At least 35 militants were killed in the rescue operation, the security source added.

Around 450 passengers were on the Jaffer Express enroute from Balochistan’s capital Quetta to Peshawar in the north, when militants opened “intense gunfire” as the train traveled through a tunnel early in its journey, according to officials.

Pakistan’s military then launched an operation to confront the attackers who used “women and children as shields,” according to security sources not authorized to speak to CNN.

One rescued woman described scenes of chaos following the attack, likening it to the “Day of Judgement.” She told CNN she fled gunfire and walked for two hours to reach safety.

File photo shows the Jaffer Express train traveling through southwestern Pakistan.

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Passenger Mohammad Ashraf told CNN he saw more than 100 armed individuals on the train and that no harm was inflicted on women and children.

The security sources accused the militants of being in contact with handlers in Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s military and government have long