Pakistan: Jaffar Express targeted again in Bolan Pass, passengers unharmed

Quetta [Pakistan], November 25 (ANI): A Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express once again came under an armed attack in the Bolan Pass area of Kachhi district on Monday, marking the sixth such incident on the Quetta-Sibi section in the past six weeks, Dawn reported.
Railway officials said the train left Quetta for Peshawar on schedule and was moving past Mach station when it reached near Aab-i-Gum, where gunmen opened fire from nearby mountains.
Security personnel on board, including Railways Police, returned fire, forcing the assailants to flee after a brief exchange.
Officials confirmed that all bogies of the Jaffar Express remained unharmed. A senior railway official said "no casualty was reported in the shooting and all passengers travelling on the train remained safe."
The train halted briefly before continuing its journey after security clearance, with authorities tightening security along the track, according to Dawn.
Monday's attack came amid a wave of recent assaults on the Jaffar Express. In recent weeks, a bomb blast damaged the railway track between Quetta and Jacobabad.
The same train also escaped another blast in Balochistan's Nasirabad district on November 16, citing police and railway officials, Dawn reported.
According to police cited by Dawn, unidentified attackers planted an explosive device on the track in the Shaheed Abdul Aziz Bullo area to target the Peshawar-bound train and later detonated it.
The train crossed the area safely, and no casualties were reported.
Nasirabad Senior Superintendent of Police Ghulam Sarwar said security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to trace those involved.
Railway officials added that a portion of the track was damaged in the explosion, suspending traffic between Quetta and other parts of the country.
Operations had only resumed on Sunday after a four-day suspension due to security concerns.
The Jaffar Express continued its journey to Peshawar after reaching Jacobabad in Sindh.
The train has been targeted repeatedly over the past several months, reflecting escalating attacks on transport infrastructure in Balochistan.
Since March 11, when Balochistan Liberation Army terrorists ambushed the Peshawar-bound train carrying 440 passengers, multiple assaults have followed.
Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said on March 12 that the clearance operation "was complete" and all 33 attackers "had been killed."
Despite this, attacks have persisted.
On June 18, a remote-controlled explosive device derailed four bogies near Jacobabad, a strike reportedly claimed by the banned Baloch Republican Guards.
On August 7 near Sibi, the train narrowly escaped another explosion.
Three days later in Mastung, "a bomb attached to the railway track exploded loudly, derailing six bogies of the train," Pakistan Railways' Quetta division public relations officer Muhammad Kashif told Dawn.
Incidents continued into September and October.
On September 23, at least four passengers were injured when six bogies were derailed in Mastung.
On October 7, seven people were hurt in Sindh's Shikarpur district when "a blast had occurred on the train tracks."
Later, on October 29, the Jaffar Express escaped a rocket attack in Nasirabad's Notal area.
Nasirabad SSP Ghulam Sarwar told Dawn that "armed men fired four rockets from a distance to target the passenger train," but none hit the coaches. (ANI)