Hostages freed from a train siege in southwestern Pakistan on Tuesday said they walked for hours through mountainous terrain to reach safety, forced to leave behind relatives from whom they were separated.

Rebels waging a war of independence against the Pakistani state set off explosions on the railway track in a remote area of Balochistan, forcing the train to a halt and taking more than 450 passengers hostage.

“I can’t find the words to describe how we managed to escape. It was terrifying,” Muhammad Bilal told AFP.

Bilal had been traveling with his mother on the Jafar Express train when it was caught in the explosive crossfire, leaving at least three dead, according to a railway official.

More than 100 hostages have been freed from the train, which remains held up by rebel forces.

“I heard an explosion followed by gunfire as rebels boarded the train,” passenger Allahditta told AFP at the train station in Mach, where the waiting area has been transformed into a makeshift hospital to treat the wounded. 

“People began hiding under the seats in panic. They separated the men from the women. They allowed me and my family to go because I told them I’m a heart patient,” the 49-year-old said.

ID checks

“We walked for a long time through the mountains to reach the nearest station. I haven’t eaten since I began fasting this morning, but I still can’t bring myself to eat,” Allahditta added, in reference to the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

One passenger described gunmen sorting through identity cards to confirm who was from outside of the province, similar to a spate of recent attacks carried out by the Baloch Liberation Army, which has claimed credit for the seige. 

“They came and checked IDs and service cards and shot two soldiers in front of me and took the other four to, I don’t know where,” said one passenger who asked not to be named, after walking four hours to the nearest train station.

“They checked IDs and those who were Punjabis were taken away by the terrorists,” he added. 

The BLA claim the region’s natural resources are being exploited by outsiders and has increased attacks targeting Pakistanis from other regions.

Late on Tuesday, survivors walked through rugged terrain to the nearest train station and travelled to Mach, about 200 kilometres (124 miles) from the Iran border. 

The first trains carrying survivors arrived late on Tuesday evening to be met by paramilitary forces and doctors. 

“I am treating two (police) officers, one was shot five times, while the other was wounded in his knee,” said paramedic Qazim Farooq.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)