The death toll from a militant hijacking of a train in Pakistan's southwestern mountains has risen to 31 soldiers, staff and civilians, the military said on Friday as it accused India and Afghanistan of backing the insurgents.

Mehboob Hussain was riding the train home on Tuesday when the tracks under the front car exploded. In the depths of central Pakistan's Bolan Pass, a pocket of wilderness so remote that there is no internet or mobile network coverage,

Terrorists in explosive vests have reportedly threatened Pakistan train passengers' lives if officials refuse to release imprisoned militants.

Pakistan’s prime minister has commended the country’s armed forces for successfully rescuing 339 passengers after a deadly train hijacking by insurgents in the southwest

Separatist militants fired at a passenger train in southwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, injuring a train driver, police and railway officials said.

The militants, Baloch ethnic fighters, said they would kill dozens of seized security personnel if the Pakistani government did not agree to a prisoner exchange.

The Balochistan Liberation Army claims it killed 6 security forces and seized a Pakistani passenger train carrying about 500 people in a remote, mountainous region.

Nearly 200 have been freed but the status of other passengers remains unclear as security forces continue to battle separatist militants.

Pakistan’s military accuses neighboring India of sponsoring militants in the restive southwestern Balochistan province, which saw an unprecedented attack this week by armed separatists.

Hostages freed after a day-long ordeal following an attack by militants on a train in Pakistan's Balochistan province described crouching on the floor for hours before their release, as the bodies of 25 people killed arrived in Quetta.