Posted on 03/11/2025 6:14:33 AM PDT by Eleutheria5
A passenger train carrying hundreds of people was attacked by armed militants in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, forcing it to halt. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has claimed responsibility for the assault on the Jaffar Express, which was en route from Quetta to Peshawar.
According to reports, the militants bombed the track before storming the train in the remote Sibi district. Pakistani authorities confirmed that at least three people, including the train driver, sustained injuries in the attack. Security forces have been deployed to the scene.
The BLA claims to have taken several passengers, including security personnel, hostage and has issued threats of severe consequences should any rescue attempt be made. However, officials have not verified these claims. Quetta’s railway controller stated that 400-450 passengers were onboard, but there is no independent confirmation of hostages.
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(Excerpt) Read more at israelnationalnews.com ...
“militants” attack army barracks, military installations & police stations. Terrorists and cowards attack passenger trains.
Muslims fighting Muslims..................
...and take hostages.
I know why people go to that God forsaken place, work or family (or USAID), but even so - that is some nasty real estate there.
The politics of that region will forever elude me.
The politics of that region will forever elude me.
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At a guess, tribal power struggles, with Islam as the justification.
The Baluchis are an Iranian people who speak a West Iranic language - Balochi which is related to Kurdish. They, like the Kurds, are considered descendants of the ancient Medes
They were split by history into 2 parts: the majority in Pakistan (and before that in British India) and a smaller chunk in Iran's Sistan-e-Balochi province.
They are IraniC, so don't fit in the IndiC Pakistan where the national language is Urdu (a merge of Prakrit/Sanskrit with Farsi) and the most common language is Punjabi which is IndiC
AND, they are Sunni, part of the IraniC people who were not forcibly converted to Shia Islam by the Safavid medieval rulers of Iran 
The Pakistani province of Baluchistan is the largest in area and has some mineral wealth, but is mainly desert.
However the Balochis are only 40% of the population, with the Pashtuns, Sindhis and Punjabis
The fighting is basically because the Baluchis want a separate country of their own, not split between Pakistan and Iran
Strangely enough, this one isn’t religion-powered. Which is why it is generally pretty weak, just like “Western Saharan” vs Morocco.
The Balochis are definitely more than a “tribe” as they have a long written history older than England.
It’s tribal and local, and what little of its true nature gets filtered through the MSM is colored by narratives that are utterly irrelevant.
Fascinating. And yet another place where we have absolutely no business, including USAID.
The USA can’t provide any real help here, so should not get involved.
The area is so mixed up and has people living there for centuries, that an ethnically pure state is unthinkable
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