The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) on Thursday denied the Pakistani military's claim that the Jaffar Express hostage crisis has ended, saying intense fighting continues, and Pakistani forces are taking heavy losses.
"The ground reality is that the battle continues on multiple fronts, and the enemy (Pakistani military) is suffering heavy casualties and military losses," said Jeeyand Baloch, spokesperson for the BLA. "The occupying army has neither achieved victory on the battlefield nor managed to save its hostage personnel," he added.
On Tuesday, insurgents [**opened fire on the Jaffar Express**](https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/pakistan-jaffar-express-train-hijack-baloch-militants-updates-2692199-2025-03-11), carrying 425 passengers in nine bogies, while it was passing through the Mashkaf tunnel near the mountainous terrain of Gudalar and Piru Kunri.
Earlier, a Pakistani army spokesperson announced that the operation to rescue hostages from a train hijacked by the Baloch separatists had ended and all 33 militants present at the scene were killed.
“The armed forces successfully concluded the operation on (Wednesday) evening by killing all terrorists and rescuing all passengers safely,” Lt. Gen. Chaudhry said.
“Today we freed a large number of people, including women and children The final operation was carried out with great care,” he said, adding 440 people had been on board and security forces had cleared the train “bogey to bogey.”
The BLA accused the Pakistani army of misleading the public through propaganda. It claimed that soldiers the military said were "rescued" had actually been released by the BLA in accordance with its war ethics and international norms.
The BLA alleged that after failing to defeat its fighters in combat, the Pakistani military had begun targeting unarmed Baloch civilians.
The group also said it had [**proposed a prisoner exchange**](https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/pakistan-jaffar-express-hijack-baloch-liberation-army-holds-hundreds-hostages-rescue-operations-underway-2692387-2025-03-12), but claimed Pakistan refused to negotiate and abandoned its soldiers. "Now that the state has abandoned its hostages to die, it will also bear responsibility for their deaths," the spokesperson said.
The BLA called on Pakistan to allow independent journalists to visit conflict zones to verify its claims of victory. "If the occupying army truly claims victory, then it should allow independent journalists and impartial sources access to the war-torn areas so that the world can witness the real losses suffered by the Pakistani army," the spokesperson said.
Jeeyand Baloch claimed the war had escalated beyond the Pakistani state's control and that the BLA was determined to continue fighting until it achieved its objectives.