A powerful car bomb struck a passenger train carrying military personnel and their families in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan on Sunday, killing at least 24 people and wounding more than 50 others. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attack.
The train was travelling from Quetta to Peshawar when an explosive-laden vehicle rammed one of its carriages at the Chaman Pattak signal point in the provincial capital. The blast, involving an improvised device estimated at 35 kilograms, derailed the carriage, shattered windows, and destroyed nearby vehicles.
Images showed a mangled railcar on its side as rescuers clambered over wreckage to reach survivors. Blood-soaked victims were carried away on stretchers as armed security forces secured the scene.
The soldiers and their families were travelling to mark the Eid holiday, due to begin on Tuesday. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the “heinous bomb explosion, which has resulted in the tragic loss of innocent lives.” He added, “Such cowardly acts of terrorism cannot weaken the resolve of the people of Pakistan.”
Witnesses Describe the Chaos
Nearby resident Mohammad Rahim told AFP the explosion jolted him awake. “My family and I jumped out of our beds when we heard a loud bang,” he said. “I heard screaming and the crying of women and children.” Another witness, Abdul Basit, said people immediately fled. “People started running for shelter,” he recalled. Mujib Ahmad, whose car suffered damage, said, “I came out of the building and saw the devastation.”
Balochistan remains Pakistan’s poorest and largest province by landmass, trailing the rest of the country in education, employment, and economic development. Separatists accuse Islamabad of extracting the province’s gas and mineral wealth without benefiting local communities.
The US-designated BLA has intensified attacks in recent years, including a deadly two-day siege on a passenger train last year carrying 450 people. Police and security agencies are now investigating Sunday’s attack.
