As the operation against terrorists involved in the Jaffar Express hijacking extends into its second day, a video claiming to depict the train attack has gone viral on social media. However, this footage is outdated and unrelated to the current incident.
On Tuesday afternoon, the separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) bombed a section of railway track and attacked the Quetta-Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express in Mushkaaf, a mountainous area in Balochistan’s Bolan range. According to state media, security forces have so far rescued 155 passengers and killed 27 terrorists as the rescue operation continues.
Several Indian accounts on the social media platform X shared a video on Tuesday, alleging it showed the Jaffar Express attack by the proscribed BLA. However, the video, which features a BLA logo, dates back to April 2022 and is unrelated to the current events.
Also read: 27 terrorists killed, 155 hostages rescued from Jaffar Express as operation continues
One Indian account posted the video with the caption: “Train hijack in Pakistan. Jaffar Express from Quetta to Peshawar hijacked after IED blast by Baloch rebels. BLA fighters have taken 182 people hostage after seizing the Jaffar Express. Eleven Pakistani soldiers have been killed.” This post garnered over 654,000 views and was shared 2,100 times.
Another Indian user, identified as a sub-editor for the far-right media outlet OpIndia, shared the video with bullet points detailing the alleged incident, accompanied by hashtags like “Balochistan,” “train hijack,” and “Jaffar Express.” This post received over 100,000 views. The same video and claims were widely circulated by other Indian accounts, collectively amassing over 137,000 views.
A reverse image search revealed that the video was originally posted on X in April 2022, with a caption suggesting a BLA attack on a train carrying Pakistani soldiers. No verifiable details or credible news reports were found to substantiate the claims associated with the video.
