Quetta, Feb 5 (.) Train services in Balochistan resumed on Thursday following five-day suspension, as security conditions showed signs of stabilising after a wave of counter-terrorism operations in response to recent militant attacks across the province.
Officials said the restoration of rail services was intended to signal a gradual return to normalcy, even as security operations and communications restrictions continue plaguing much of the already troubled province.
Mobile data services, however, remained suspended for a sixth consecutive day in Quetta and several surrounding districts, reports Dawn.
“Train services within Balochistan and to other provinces have been restored,” Pakistan Railways Quetta division spokesperson Muhammad Kashif said.
He said the Jaffar Express on the Quetta-Peshawar route and the Karachi-bound Bolan Mail — both suspended since January 31 — were back in operation. Services on the Quetta-Chaman passenger line have also resumed, with trains departing on schedule.
By contrast, internet restrictions remained firmly in place. Balochistan Additional Chief Secretary Hamza Shafqaat said mobile data services were still unavailable in Quetta, though authorities hoped to restore connectivity by midnight.
Similar suspensions were reported in Nushki, Sibi and Mastung, while residents in Kalat, Khuzdar, Awaran, Panjgur and Turbat have faced intermittent outages over recent weeks due to security concerns.
The disruptions come amid massive spike in the long-running Baloch insurgency, which has entered a particularly volatile and lethal phase in early February 2026. The situation deteriorated markedly after the Baloch Liberation Army launched ‘Operation Herof 2.0’.
As part of the operation, the Baloch fighters on January 31 carried out near-simultaneous suicide bombings and armed assaults at over a dozen locations, including Quetta, Gwadar, Nushki and Pasni. Pakistani security forces, including the army and the Frontier Corps, have since conducted extensive counter-operations.
While it’s hard to independently verify the casualty figures, the BLA has claimed to have killed over 220-280 security personnel, in synchronised, targeted operations across townships and cities.
Beyond just casualties, the attacks have taken a visible toll on security personnel, damaging troop morale severely due to the killing of officers, and the targeting of critical infrastructure in a massive statewide offensive.
Reportedly, the BLA has conducted attacks on several critical govt infrastructure sites, damaging banks, police stations, army cantonments, prisons, raiding government offices and dozens of other state facilities across towns such as Nushki, Kalat, Quetta, Dalbandin and Turbat.
. . PRS