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, the nine-coach Jaffar Express ground to a halt. Then the bullets started flying.

QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Balochistan province on Thursday, as dozens of people rescued from a train hijacked by separatist militants arrived in Quetta after security forces killed 33 attackers to end a day-long standoff.

Nearly 350 hostages were rescued at the end of a deadly standoff between Pakistan’s military and armed militants who hijacked a train in the southwestern Pakistani province of Balochistan, a security source told CNN Wednesday.

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s neglected southwestern province of Balochistan has been the scene of a yearslong insurgency, with a dramatic uptick in attacks in recent years underscoring the struggles the government in Islamabad faces in dealing with myriad security threats.

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.

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