Pakistan: Blast on tracks derails Jaffar Express again; several injured
The Jafar Express, which runs between Quetta and Peshawar, has been repeatedly targeted in recent months, with the attack in March being the worst
Several people were injured in a blast that occurred on a railway track, which derailed five bogies of Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express in Pakistan’s southwestern Sindh province on Tuesday (October 7), railway police said.
The train has been attacked multiple times this year.
The injured passengers were immediately rushed to a nearby hospital. The explosion occurred near Somarwah, close to Sultan Kot in Shikarpur district and the rescue operation is underway at the site, police said.
Also read: Trump says tariffs help US play ‘peacekeeper’, cites India-Pak truce again
Heavy contingents of police and paramilitary forces have cordoned off the area and begun collecting evidence to determine the nature of the explosion.
Initial reports suggest that the railway track has sustained significant damage.
Multiple attacks in a year
The Jafar Express, which runs between Quetta and Peshawar, has been repeatedly targeted in recent months, with the attack in March being the worst.
Also read: Pakistan approaches US to build, operate $1.2 bn worth port on Arabian Sea: Report
Last month, a blast on the railway track in Dasht area of Mastung, Balochistan, destroyed one coach of Jaffar Express and derailed six others, leaving 12 passengers injured.
On August 10, four people were injured when an improvised explosive device (IED) derailed six coaches of the train in the Mastung district.
BLA behind attack
The separatist Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attack that happened on August 4 where the pilot engine sent for clearance came under gunfire near Kolpur.
In June, another explosion in Jacobabad district of Sindh targeted the train, derailing four coaches. No casualties were reported in that attack.
On March 11, the Jaffar Express was hijacked, resulting in the deaths of 26 people, which included security personnel. Security forces in a targeted operation killed 33 terrorists involved in attacking the train and rescued 354 hostages.
It is believed that ethnic Baloch terrorist groups carry out such attacks.
(With agency Inputs)