by Mick the Ram

Just days after a militant group hijacked a train carrying over 450 passengers in Pakistan, which saw 21 innocent people lose their lives, a second militant outfit have carried out a suicide attack on a military camp close to the Afghan-Pakistani border.

Reports indicate that Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were responsible as they attempted to attack the Jandola check-post, but were stopped by security forces with at least 10 militants killed by the Army, but a suicide bomber was successful in detonating an explosives-laden vehicle in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.

This attack occurred as the country was recovering from the shocking situation that saw the Jaffar Express train in Balochistan’s Bolan taken over by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and petrified train travellers were held at gun point, with 21 losing their lives, in addition to all 33 attackers who were “eliminated” in the mountainous region.

Terror attacks on the rise

The suicide mission was carried out close to the Frontier Corps (FC) camp, in the South Waziristan district. Loud explosions were heard followed by heavy gunfire, but the response by the Pakistan Army was swift and eliminated the threat in rapid time in a short exchange.

The country’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to wiping out terrorism. The country has been witnessing a sharp increase in terror attacks since the start of the year, with incidents surging by 42% compared to the end of 2024.

Data has revealed that at least 74 militant attacks were recorded nationwide, resulting in 91 fatalities, made up of 35 security personnel, 20 civilians, and 36 militants.

Train hijack carefully planned

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) remains the worst-affected province, followed by Balochistan. The train hijacking which rocked Pakistan earlier in the week saw militants blow up the rail tracks.

They then opened fire on the Express when it came to a halt in the strategic Bolan Valley, as it made its way to Peshawar from Quetta, which is the capital of mineral-rich Balochistan.

Who are the BLA?

It was reported later that many hostages particularly women and children were used as “human shields” by the BLA and it is becoming clear that the group has significantly expanded the scale and sophistication of its operations, conducting more than 150 attacks last year alone, culminating in this devastating train attack.

The BLA emerged in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s having distinguished itself as a group committed to Balochistan’s complete independence from Pakistan. They took up arms against the Pakistani state due to what it considered the federal government’s “continuous misadventures”, which, it claim, undermine genuine political and socioeconomic progress in the province.

Hostage account

Survivor Arslan Yousaf recalled the terrifying moment the hijacking began, explaining how armed men stormed the train with launchers, guns, and other weapons and immediately started shooting directly at people.

“They kept shouting that they would kill anyone who didn’t come out, but then they began checking everyone’s ID cards – Punjabis, Sindhis, Baloch. They separated us into groups and any soldiers were taken outside and executed.”

Pakistan’s military and government have long accused Afghanistan of providing sanctuary to militant groups, something its Taliban leaders have denied.

Disenfranchised province

Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest, but least populous province and has a long history of marginalisation. The province was annexed in 1948, six months after partition from India and it has witnessed several separatist movements ever since.

It is regarded as the country’s poorest region despite being rich in natural resources such as coal, gold, copper, and gas.

Its residents have become deeply disenfranchised, impoverished, and have grown increasingly alienated from the federal government by decades of policies widely seen as discriminatory.

It is also home to one of Pakistan’s major deep-sea ports at Gwadar, a crucial trade corridor for the $62bn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which aims to link southwestern China to the Arabian Sea through Pakistan.