Faisal Abbas 
Ambulance
The Pakistani army announced the end of the armed operation against gunmen belonging to the Balochistan Liberation Army, after they seized a train carrying nearly 400 people in the Baluchistan region, southwest of Pakistan, the day before yesterday, and detained with them more than 200 hostages of the army, police and intelligence. The army also announced the killing of 21 hostages, 33 militants and four of its members.
Pakistani army spokesman, General Ahmed Sharif, said in a press conference yesterday evening, Wednesday, that the army forces launched the operation against the militants in three stages, in which the army, the air force, the paramilitary forces, and the special forces participated. Sharif added that the army forces launched the operation with caution and wisdom, because the suicide bombers from the Balochistan Liberation Army were stationed in the middle of the detainees, announcing the release of all hostages, without specifying the number. While the army confirmed that all 33 militants were killed during the operation, the Pakistani Interior had announced early on Wednesday that about 70 militants launched this operation.
The Balochistan Liberation Army had announced the killing of 30 security personnel after they took control of the train, and announced the detention of 214 hostages of the army, police and intelligence. The organization also gave a 48 -hour deadline to the Pakistani government to release its detainees in prisons, threatening to kill all the hostages if the Pakistani forces tried to reach them or launched an armed operation against them.
According to media and tribal sources, the region witnessed violent clashes between the two parties from Tuesday until Wednesday evening, and the Pakistani aviation covered the area. Although the army announced the end of the operation and the release of all detainees, it has reached only 150 of the detainees for their families, and the army did not announce the location of these hostages who were released. While some of the hostages, released, said that the gunmen evacuated their path, and killed a large number of them, and that the dead bodies were lying everywhere.
In addition, the BBC Western channel quoted sources in the railway administration, as it had transferred 200 coffin for the dead to the area where the accident occurred after the operation ended. It also quoted government sources that the gunmen took some hostages with them to the mountains and are still missing.
It is noteworthy that the reluctance of the Pakistani army to mention a specific number of hostages who were released on the one hand, and the failure of a large number of hostages to their families or any safe place, raises questions about the results of the operation. There is also a conflict between the hostages of the hostages who were released and the statements of officials regarding the number of hostages released and the number of dead, which raises doubts that the number of dead may be greater than what the official authorities mentioned, and it is expected that the coming hours will reveal many of the circumstances of the accident.
