26 martyred as terrorists target train passengers

At least 26 passengers – including women – were martyred and more than 60 others injured when a suicide bomb attack tore through the Quetta railway station Saturday morning, police said.

The bomber detonated the charge in the midst of passengers waiting on the platform to board the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express, which was set to chug off at 9am.

An outlawed Baloch terrorist group claimed responsibility for the bombing which came a week after terrorists detonated an IED near a girls school and a hospital in Mastung district which claimed eight lives, including those of five children.

First responders saw chaos at the scene as passengers lay dead and injured in pools of blood and a large metal shed of the platform blown off by the impact of the blast. Firefighters, rescuers and passengers were working through abandoned luggage on the platform, guarded by heavily armed security forces.

Railway officials said that the blast happened near the ticket booth when two trains were scheduled to depart. Rescuers drove the casualties to the Civil Hospital, where a state of emergency was declared.

Medical Superintendent Dr Noorullah Musakhail confirmed the death toll, saying the victims included both men and women. "We have also received 46 injured people," he said, adding that some of them were being treated for life-threatening wounds.

Sandeman Provincial Hospital spokesperson Wasim Baig told AFP that the injured 46 members of the security forces and 14 civilians. SSP Operations Muhammad Baloch said two railway police officers, Ghulam Rasool Jamali and Bhoral Khan, were also among the injured.

Mohammed Omer, one of the injured, said that he went to the station to get a train home to his village. "But just as we arrived, there was the explosion and I found myself wounded and in hospital," he added.

Mohammed Irfan had to identify two of his deceased relatives at the hospital. "As we woke up we found out there was an explosion," he said. "Then we discovered that my uncle and another relative had gone to have tea at the station."

Provincial government spokesperson Shahid Rind told the media that it was a suicide bombing. Quetta Division Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat added that the attacker might have snuck into the railway station through open access points, bypassing the security gates.

Provincial police chief Moazzam Jah Ansari was quoted by Reuters as saying that "the target was security personnel from the Infantry School". Baig told AFP that "14 security personnel and 12 civilians" were martyred in the bombing.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the attackers "will pay a heavy price", according to a statement from his office. Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti strongly condemned the attack, calling for an immediate and thorough investigation. He expressed frustration over the continued targeting of innocent civilians, vowing justice for the victims.

"These terrorists are deliberately harming ordinary people, including women and children, and they will face accountability," Bugti said while speaking at a joint presser with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who rushed to Quetta after the bombing, to attend the funerals of the victims.

Bugti appealed to people to "treat terrorists as terrorists" and appreciate that the state was working to counter their threat. He took aim at human rights activists asking why they remained silent on the attack. "Where are they?" Bugti asked.

"They should demand that the government do something about this," he added. "These people turn the Baloch youth into suicide bombers and pursue politics this way," he said. "Terrorists have no nation, this is a battle for all aspects of society - the media, the judiciary, the politicians."

While responding to a question, the chief minister said, "We have to protect every inch of the state and they have to breach only one inch of the state. That causes a lot of damage." Naqvi added, "The Balochistan government has taken the lead and is empowering the FC. You will see results from the CM's approach."

Pakistan Railways had previously announced the restoration of train services between Quetta and Peshawar from Oct 11, after a suspension of more than a month and a half. Train services had been suspended across the country on August 26 after a key railway bridge between Kolpur and Mach was destroyed in a blast carried out by BLA as part of province-wide coordinated attacks.

(With additional input from Agencies)