India main sponsor of terrorism in Balochistan: DG ISPR

Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (DG-ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said on Friday that India was the main sponsor of terrorism in Balochistan.

Addressing a press conference following the terrorist attack on Jaffar Express, Lt Gen Chaudhry said that India was leading the misinformation warfare, and spreading propaganda about the Jaffar Express hijacking.

“The Indian media displayed fake footage of the incident to spread propaganda,” he said, showing some video clips on a screen.

“They attempted to create a narrative by sharing AI-generated images and fake videos. They were leading an informational warfare.”

Providing details of the incident, the DG ISPR said that the remote location made physical access very challenging.

“There were no mobile signals there either.”

Lt Gen Chaudhry said that before the attack on the train, a large group of terrorists launched an assault on a Frontier Corps (FC) post, resulting in the martyrdom of three FC soldiers.

He said that the attackers, operating in multiple groups, strategically positioned themselves on higher ground before executing their plan.

“After planting an improvised explosive device (IED) to disable the train, they took the passengers hostage,” he said, adding that some of the passengers were held inside the train, while others were separated into three groups outside.

One group of hostages was later released, reportedly based on ethnic affiliations. DG ISPR said this was a logistical decision, as the number of passengers was too large for the attackers to control.

The terrorists, he noted, attempted to portray their actions as humane by selectively releasing some hostages, creating a misleading narrative.

Lt Gen Chaudhry revealed that the weapons used in the attack—including those used in previous incidents—were of Indian and Afghan origin. He asserted that the broader objective behind such attacks was being driven by Pakistan’s eastern neighbour.

Presenting video clips of Indian officials and analysts discussing efforts to destabilise Balochistan, the DG ISPR said the Jaffar Express attack was a continuation of that strategy.

The presser comes after terrorists blew up a railway track and opened fire on Jaffar Express, taking dozens of hostages and battling security forces conducting a rescue operation.

Moreover, terrorists had positioned suicide bombers next to some innocent hostages using them as human shield.

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a terrorist organisation in Pakistan, said it blew up the tracks and “swiftly took control of the train”.

The BLA had threatened to start killing hostages if authorities missed a 48-hour deadline to release Baloch political prisoners, activists, and missing people it claimed had been arrested by the military.

However, in an operation, the security forces killed all 33 terrorists and rescued all the hostages.

Speaking to a private news channel, Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry highlighted the coordinated efforts of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Special Services Group (SSG), Pakistan Army, and Frontier Corps (FC).

“All 33 terrorists were killed… no harm was caused to any passenger during the clearance operation,” Lt Gen Chaudhry stated.

However, before security forces initiated the operation, 21 passengers were martyred by the terrorists, he added.

The DG ISPR revealed that the militants had kept the hostages—including women and children—as human shields and placed suicide bombers among them.

“Snipers from the security forces successfully neutralised the suicide bombers,” he said.