QUETTA: Twelve people, including women and children, were injured when the Quetta-bound Jaffar Express was targeted in a bomb blast in the Spizend area of Mastung on Tuesday.
According to railway officials, six bogies of the train coming from Peshawar derailed after the blast and one overturned, injuring the passengers in that carriage.
It was the second blast in the same area within 10 hours. Earlier in the morning, an explosion had occurred near the main track linking Balochistan to the rest of the country, just as the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express was preparing to leave Quetta Railway Station. The train was briefly halted but allowed to continue after security clearance, as the track was not damaged.
Police officials said an explosive device planted on the track was detonated when the Quetta-bound train was passing through the Spizend area.
“Six bogies of the Jaffar Express derailed after the blast and one of them overturned,” a senior Pakistan Railways official told Dawn, adding that five passengers sustained injuries.
Security forces and police rushed to the site soon after the blast and shifted the injured to a nearby health facility.
The railway officials confirmed 270 passengers were on board at the time of the blast. They said the damaged part of the track would be repaired after security clearance on Wednesday, during which train service would remain suspended.
