At least four people were injured when a blast caused six bogies of the Jaffar Express to derail near Spezand town in Dasht tehsil, Mastung district of Balochistan, officials reported. The incident occurred amid rising militant attacks on the province’s transport infrastructure in recent years, particularly targeting railway tracks.
Dr Waseem Baig, spokesperson for the Balochistan Health Department and Quetta Civil Hospital, told Dawn News: “Three people were injured in the blast and have been shifted to the Civil Hospital Trauma Centre, while an injured child has been taken to Combined Military Hospital.”
Muhammad Kashif, public relations officer for Pakistan Railways’ Quetta division, confirmed the blast and derailment to Dawn News. He said, “The train was coming from Peshawar to Quetta and there were 270 passengers on board.”
Kashif added that a relief train was immediately dispatched from Quetta, with rescue teams, trucks, and private cranes sent to the site for assistance. He noted that repair work on the railway line and removal of the bogies was scheduled to begin during daylight hours. Security forces had cordoned off the area and initiated a search operation.
Pattern of Recent Attacks
This derailment comes shortly after similar attacks in the same region. Last month, six bogies were derailed near the same location. Just three days prior, a Quetta-bound Jaffar Express narrowly avoided disaster when a bomb exploded after the train passed near Sibi.
Other recent incidents include:
• July 24: An explosion damaged a bogie of the Bolan Mail on the Quetta-Sibi rail section.
• July 28: Jaffar Express derailment in Sindh’s Sukkur initially reported as an explosion, later attributed to a technical fault by the Ministry of Railways.
• June: Four bogies of the Jaffar Express derailed in Jacobabad due to a remotely controlled explosive device; no casualties were reported.
• April: 3UP train from Karachi to Quetta was stopped at Jacobabad railway station for security reasons.
Train services between Quetta and the rest of Pakistan resumed on March 27 following the suspension caused by the hijacking of a Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express on March 11, which killed 21 passengers and four security personnel. The military confirmed that all 33 terrorists involved were neutralised during a two-day clearance operation.
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