Claim: A viral video on social media shows an improvised explosive device (IED) attack on Jaffar Express in Balochistan by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).
Fact: The video is old and unrelated to the attack carried out on Jaffar Express on 11 March 2025. It is actually from January 2022 when the BLA similarly attacked a train in the Mushkaf area of Balochistan.
On 11 March 2025, many users shared a now-deleted video (archive) on X (formerly Twitter) with the caption:
بلوچستان میں ہونے والے ٹرین حملے کی فوٹیج۔
Translation: [Footage of the train attack in Balochistan].
Another user wrote:
ٹرین حملے کی ویڈیو بھی موصول ہو گئی ۔
بظاہر بم دھماکہ سے ٹرین کے اگلے حصے کو اڑایا گیا اور بعد موجود افراد یرغمال بنا لیے گئے
Translation: [Video of the train attack has been received.
The front of the train was blown up by a bomb explosion and the people on board were taken hostage.]
Jaffar Express Attack
On 11 March 2025, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist-militant group, attacked and seized the Peshawar-bound train Jaffar Express near Quetta. According to Controller Railways Muhammad Kashif, the train, which consisted of nine coaches, was transporting approximately 500 passengers from Quetta in Balochistan, to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, passing through Punjab province along the way, reported Dawn. In an initial statement, the BLA claimed responsibility for the attack, alleging that six military personnel were killed and over 100 individuals were taken hostage, including security personnel. The group also warned of retaliation if security forces launched an operation. Security officials told AP that over 300 hostages have been rescued and operations have now concluded. Police also confirmed that at least 14 soldiers were among the dead. According to AP, security officials “gave no details about the hostages killed. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.”
A press release shared by the BLA after an attack on Jaffar Express. —11 March 2025
Rescue Operation & High Alert
According to an earlier statement by Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind, there was “intense firing at Jaffar Express” by the militant group. Pakistan’s state media reported that despite the harsh terrain, a clearance operation was launched by the security forces.
After the attack, initially the Balochistan government directed local authorities to take “emergency measures“, and hospitals in Quetta and Sibi remained on high alert while a relief train and security forces were sent to the site of the incident. However, officials faced difficulties in reaching the site due to the rocky terrain, reported Geo News.
The Guardian reported that in a statement, the BLA claimed to have killed 30 military personnel and captured 214 military and police officers. The group asserted that all civilians on board had been safely escorted off the train. However, Soch Fact Check could verify the BLA’s claims independently.
According to an update by state-run media outlet Radio Pakistan on 12 March 2025, 27 attackers have been killed and around 150 hostages have been rescued – including women and children – by the security forces. Citing security officials, the report added that the attackers have positioned suicide bombers near the hostages and are using them as human shields.
The rescue operation continues amid the tension and high security alert. The number of casualties can not be confirmed as it is still a developing story. However, Dawn cited officials who reported that 10 people, including the train driver have been killed. Following the attack, Pakistan Railways has temporarily suspended the train services in the region until the area is secured by law enforcement agencies.
Train Route and Attack Location
Passenger trains and bridges have been attacked many times over the years in the Bolan terrain. The railway route of Quetta-Peshawar journey spans over 1,600 kilometers and takes more than 30 hours, with more than 30 stops on the route. The attack on 11 March 2025 took place near the Mushkaf Tunnel, situated between Quetta and Sibi. This railway route from Quetta to Sibbi features 18 tunnels, linking the mountainous region of Bolan to the rest of the country. The Mushkaf Tunnel is in a remote and harsh terrain, with the nearest station at Pehro Kunri.
A map showing the attack location and distance from the N-65 highway near Mushkaf. – Credits Dawn GIS/Abdul Moiz Malik
Balochistan’s challenging geographical landscape with difficult terrains can make parts of the area inaccessible through land without the railway route and the national highway. The railway line and the Quetta-Jackobabad N65 Highway run parallel with each other through most of the region. However, near Mushkaf, the railway route—first carved through the mountains by the British—following the Bolan River takes a direct path, while the highway takes a different route before meeting it again near Mach. This diversion, as seen in the map near Mushkaf Tunnel, is isolated and rugged, and combined with weak mobile signals causes frequent communication blackouts. This lack of connectivity adds to the security risks in the region.
The BLA’s Recent Activity
Balochistan has witnessed a surge in terrorist attacks as compared to the last few years. In January 2025, the Islamabad-based think tank Pak Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS) warned in a security report that the situation in Balochistan had become “alarming.” In 2024, the province experienced a sharp rise in terrorist attacks and casualties, with an 84% increase in attacks compared to the previous year, the report noted. It added that a total of 202 incidents were recorded, resulting in 322 deaths and 534 injuries. Notably, attacks carried out by the BLA and Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) surged by a staggering 119% accounting for 171 attacks, according to the same report.
The BLA targeted the railways in August 2024, when they carried out a blast destroying a key railway bridge between Kolpur and Mach and also killed 23 people in a separate attack within the same day on the national highway after checking their IDs as most of them were coming from Punjab. Following the attack, Pakistan Railway suspended train services between Quetta and Peshawar for six weeks, followed by the resumption of train services in October 2024.
Weeks later, in November 2024, a suicide blast at Quetta Railway Station killed at least 26 people and injured 62 others, escalating security threats in the region.
The BLA is the biggest of several militant groups who, for the last few decades, claim that the government unfairly exploits Balochistan’s rich gas and mineral resources.
Fact or Fiction?
To investigate the claim, Soch Fact Check conducted a reverse image search on the video keyframes on Google Lens. The results led to a Reddit post published on 16 April 2022. The post’s caption reads, “Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed remote controlled IED attack derailing Jaffar Express carrying Pakistan Army personnel in Mushkaf an area between Bolan and Sibi districts of Balochistan”. The same visuals as those of the video being fact-checked can be seen in the Reddit video, which was shared in a combat military group. However, the post does not clarify whether the video is from April 2022 or not.
Another result showed that the same video was posted on a website, Funker 530. The website shares combat military videos and war footage around the globe for the veteran community. The caption of the post reads, “Separatists Derail Train With Improvised Explosive Device”. The video has a logo of BLA on the top right corner, and according to its description, the footage was released by BLA showing an “improvised explosive device (IED) attack on a train they claimed was carrying Pakistani troops on 18 January 2022.” In the beginning, the video also features the same date and area where the attack was carried out.
Taking cues from this, Soch Fact Check did a keyword search on Google, which led to a news report published by Dawn on 18 January 2022. The report highlights that Jaffar Express was derailed after an explosion attack took place near the Mushkaf area of Bolan, injuring at least five people.
Pakistan Today also reported on the incident and mentioned that the then Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qaddos Bizenjo had strongly condemned the blast along with directing the concerned authorities to provide immediate relief to the injured persons.
Furthermore, we also contacted Asim Khan, a multimedia journalist from Quetta working with CNN and Lok Sujag – a local digital media outlet based in Lahore. Khan reiterated to Soch Fact Check, in a WhatsApp message, that this particular video is from January 2022 and has nothing to do with the recent attack.
We also contacted Dauran Baloch, a freelance journalist residing in Quetta, to verify whether an IED explosion had been carried out on Jaffar Express in last night’s attack. He stated that the train was fired at and there was likely an explosion before that, but this was not yet confirmed. However, the video in the viral claim was released by BLA in 2022 and is not related to the recent incident, Baloch clarified.
Thus, Soch Fact Check confirms that the video of the IED blast is not from the recent attack on Jaffar Express in Balochistan. Users sharing the video with this claim on social media are spreading misinformation.
Virality
On X, the now deleted video garnered 51,000 views, 1,900 likes and 474 reposts within hours. It was mostly shared by Indian users here, here, here and here.
It was also shared here, here and here on Facebook.
Conclusion: A video showing an IED blast on a train is not from the recent March 2025 attack on Jaffar Express in Balochistan. The video is actually from January 2022 when BLA attacked and derailed a train, injuring five people.
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Background image in cover photo: Getty Images
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