India Behind Balochistan Terror, Jaffar Express Attack, Claims ISPR

Islamabad-(Mudassar Iqbal)-DG ISPR Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry accused India of being the primary sponsor of terrorism in Balochistan, citing the recent Jaffar Express attack as a continuation of this policy. Speaking at a media briefing alongside Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, he stated, ‘The main sponsor of these attacks is our eastern neighbor.’ This accusation follows the Baloch Liberation Army’s (BLA) attack on the Jaffar Express, which involved detonating train tracks and holding over 440 passengers hostage in Bolan district.”

The military, after clearing the train and rescuing hostages, said it killed 33 attackers. Before the operation began, terrorists had martyred 26 passengers, while four security personnel were martyred during the operation.

The DG ISPR said that the terrorists stopped the Jaffar Express via an IED blast in hilly terrain area where accessibility is difficult.

Meanwhile, a media warfare led by India media began in support of the terrorists, said the DG ISPR.

Lt Gen Chaudhry said the incident of Jaffar Express is continuity of the India policy to sponsor terrorism in Pakistan.

“The incident of Jaffar Express is continuity of the same policy, the same sponsorship from where is it was engineered and from it was being pushed..,” he remarked.

Slamming the Indian media, the DG ISPR said that fake videos were created by using artificial intelligence (AI) to spread malicious propaganda regarding Jaffar Express attack on the social media platforms.

“Indian media spread propaganda by using the fake videos to exaggerate the situation,” he said.

“India media tried to create a narrative [against Pakistan] by airing fake videos,” he said, adding that the Indian media also played terrorists’ old videos taken from the social media.

“A [terrorists] activity was underway in [Balochistan] and the other activity was being run by Indian media,” the military spokesperson said.

Briefing about the hijacking incident with the help of maps, Lt Gen Chaudhry said that the terrorists were in different groups, adding that one of the militant groups kept the women and children inside the train.

“Rest of the passengers were brought outside the train by terrorists and divided into groups,” he added.

In a bid to create a “false impression” of humanitarian values, the militants released a group of hostages in the evening, he added.

However, some of the hostages managed to escape when they got the chance, he revealed, adding that the terrorists also opened fire on the fleeing passengers.

The Lt Gen said that the terrorists were in contact with their handlers in Afghanistan.

“From the terrorists’ communication, we came to know that there were suicide bombers among them,” he added.

All terrorists were eliminated during a successful and complex operation with 36 hours, Lt Gen Chaudhry said adding that terrorists could not harm anyone during the final clearance operation.