Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is talking about Quetta after a visit to Baluchistan following a terrorist attack on a Jaffar Express train.
The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon when the train, which was traveling from Quetta to Peshawar and transported 440 passengers, was ambushed by terrorists of the militant group of the Baluchistan Liberation Army (Bla). They opened fire on the train and kept passengers as hostages, which led the security forces to start an operation that lasted two days.
On Wednesday night, the general director of Public Relations between Services (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, confirmed that the operation had been completed, with 33 terrorists present at the site of the neutralized attack. The ISPR chief also confirmed that 21 passengers and four members of the border body staff lost their lives in kidnapping, but the hostages were not damaged during the final rescue phase.
Prime Minister Shehbaz arrived in Quetta on a day visit today with federal ministers and other officials.
The prime minister presided over a high -level meeting to review the security situation, where he was informed about the current situation of laws and order in Baluchistan, including the recent terrorist attack.
Going to a press conference after the meeting, the prime minister said that the officials had met at a time when the entire nation was mourning for the attack.
Attacking terrorists, he said they had not worried the holiness of the Sacred Month of Ramazan and made innocent citizens hostage while marking some of them. “Such an incident has never happened before in the country of Pakistan,” he said.
The prime minister said that the subsequent action plan adopted aimed to save the lives of hostages and eliminate terrorists. He added that 339 passengers were rescued while 33 terrorists were “sent to hell.”
The prime minister said that the government could have saved the life of its citizens in the recent incident, but that the nation could not afford to experience a similar event again.
“For that, we must all play our role,” referring to federal authorities and all provincial. The prime minister said that the whole country could not prosper and develop if the Baluchistan development rhythm was not reached to the other provinces.
“Peace cannot be established in Pakistan until terrorism is completely eliminated in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan.”
The prime minister criticized the PTI government for its measure to resettle the fighters of the prohibited Pakistan of Tehreek-I-Taliban in the country after an agreement with the group, saying that the measure was the guilt of the emergence of terrorism again.
Prime Minister Shehbaz praised security forces for his role and sacrifices in the fight against terrorism. The prime minister criticized a certain “segment” in the country for his “poisonous” rhetoric in the midst of the situation, saying that the same was carried and proliferated by the Indian media.
More to follow.
