In Pakistan's Baluchistan region, armed rebels attacked a train carrying hundreds of passengers and took many hostages. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) opened fire on the Zafar Express train from Quetta to Peshawar and took several hostages, the BBC reported, citing military sources.

In a statement from the separatist group, they said that they detonated a bomb on the track before attacking the train in the remote Sibi district. Pakistani police said that at least three people, including the train driver, were injured in the incident. According to the Pakistani police, security forces were sent to the scene and helicopters were mobilized to rescue the hostages. 

A spokesman for the Balochistan government told the local newspaper Dawn that there had been reports of "intense firing" on the train. A senior police officer said, "The train was attacked just before the tunnel surrounded by mountains," news agency AFP reported. 

A senior military officer said that more than 100 army personnel who boarded the train from Quetta were traveling, according to the BBC. The BLA has warned that if any attempt is made to rescue those under their control, they will face serious consequences.

BLA has been rebelling for the independence of Balochistan for decades. During that time, BLA has been targeting police stations, railways and highways. BLA has been declared a terrorist organization by many western countries including Pakistan as well as Britain and America. 

According to Muhammad Kashif, the railway controller of Quetta, there were 400 to 450 passengers on the train. But the authorities have not been able to ascertain the number of hostages. A local railway official in Quetta told the BBC that a group of at least 60 passengers got off the train and reached the nearby railway station Paneer. Railway officials in Quetta, citing paramilitary sources, told the BBC that the women and children had disembarked from the train and were walking towards the city of Sibi. 

Meanwhile, the families of the passengers are trying to get information from the counter at the Quetta railway station. Muhammad Ashraf, the son of a passenger who left Quetta to go to Lahore on Tuesday morning, told BBC Urdu that he has not been able to contact his father.