The Taliban on Thursday rejected Pakistan’s claims that Afghanistan-based militants were involved in the hijacking of a Jaffar Express train in Balochistan.

"We categorically reject baseless allegations by the Pakistani army spokesperson linking the attack on a passenger train in Balochistan province with Afghanistan, and urge the Pakistani side to focus on resolving their own security and internal problems instead of such irresponsible remarks," said Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On Tuesday, separatist militants hijacked a passenger train travelling from Quetta to Peshawar, taking hundreds of passengers hostage in the Bolan region of Balochistan. The Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack.

This comes after reports claiming that Pakistan has accused terrorist leaders based in Afghanistan of orchestrating the attack, citing intelligence reports that identified direct communication between those leaders and the attackers.

Meanwhile, a Pakistani Army spokesperson said on Wednesday that security forces had ended an operation to rescue hostages from a train hijacked by Baloch insurgents, killing all 33 militants involved. The spokesperson said 21 passengers and four Pakistani soldiers were killed during the operation.

“The armed forces successfully concluded the operation on (Wednesday) evening by killing all terrorists and rescuing all passengers safely,” Lt Gen Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry said.

The Baloch Liberation Army disputed the claim, saying that fighting was still underway and Pakistani forces were taking heavy losses.

“The ground reality is that the battle continues on multiple fronts, and the enemy (Pakistani military) is suffering heavy casualties and military losses,” the group said in a statement.

“The occupying army has neither achieved victory on the battlefield nor managed to save its hostage personnel,” it added. The Baloch Liberation Army seeks independence for Balochistan from Pakistan.

Source: India Today