Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday landed in Quetta to express solidarity with the people and review law and order situation in light of the deadly Jaffar Express hijacking incident.
The PM is accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, Federal Minister for Planning, Development Ahsan Iqbal, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Nawabzada Mir Khalid Magsi and others.
The PM's visit follows the culmination of security forces' operation during which all 33 Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) terrorists were eliminated had hijacked the Jaffar Express which was carrying more than 400 passengers — taken hostage — on Tuesday.
Announcing the completion of the around two-day-long operation, Director General Inter-Services Public Relations Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said the armed forces took part in the action against terrorist who "remained in contact with their facilitators and mastermind based in Afghanistan via satellite phone".
Units from the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Special Services Group (SSG), Army, and Frontier Corps (FC) took part in the operation, the army's spokesperson said.
Noting that all hostages had been freed, the military's spokesperson revealed that 21 passengers were martyred by the terrorists before the clearance operation had commenced. Also, four FC personnel were also martyred during the attack in Mushqaf area of the Bolan district.
"Whoever did this will be hunted down and brought to justice," said Lt Gen Chaudhry, adding that the suicide bombers — present near the hostages using them as human shields — were taken out by snipers.
Meanwhile, with emergency imposed in Sibi and Civil Hospital Quetta, at least 29 wounded in the Jaffar Express incident have been shifted to the provincial capital — of which 16 and 13 have been brought to the CMH and the Civil Hospital, respectively.
According to the hospital administration, the condition of the injured passengers is stable and they are out of danger. Also, 47 passengers have been shifted to Quetta from Mach.
Meanwhile, the bodies of those martyred along with several of those wounded in the incident have been shifted to the Mach Railway Station and will be sent to their native areas after necessary administrative pre-requisites.
Reacting to the unfortunate incident, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif lambasted the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for using similar language to that used by the Indian media and from accounts from Afghanistan on social media platforms.
"We need to rise above political interests and demonstrate national unity [on such occasions]," said Asif.
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