Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express hit with IED blast

At least four injured as five coaches of passenger train derail near Spezand Railway Station in Mastung

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QUETTA:

At least four people were injured on Sunday when an improvised explosive device (IED) derailed five coaches of Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express at Spezand Railway Station in Mastung, according to Pakistan Railways (PR) officials. 

The blast struck a train track near Spezand Railway Station derailing 39-Up Jaffar Express train, which runs from Quetta to Peshawar. 

All five passengers sustained minor injuries, PR officials said, adding that rescue teams, including railways staff, were immediately dispatched to the site. 

Federal Minister for Railways Muhammad Hanif Abbasi strongly condemned the attack, vowing that such cowardly acts of terrorism would never deter the nation’s resolve.

Read: At least 25 killed, over 50 injured in Quetta railway station blast

The Jaffar Express had departed for Peshawar at 9.00am and was passing through Spezand Railway Station when the IED hit. A relief train was dispatched to the station to transport stranded passengers.

Security forces and police cordoned off the area. The bomb disposal squad is clearing the site, after which the passengers will be shifted to Quetta Railway Station via the relief train.

This is not the first time the Jaffar Express has been targeted. A similar attack in November 2024, claimed the lives of 25 people and left 50 other injured.

More recently, Jaffar Express narrowly escaped an attack en route to Quetta last week when a bomb planted near the track at Sibi Railway Station reportedly went off just after the passenger train passed. 

PR authorities confirmed the explosion to the media and stated that the blast occured near the outer signal of the track linking Balochistan to the rest of the country.