Armed militants are holding hundreds of train passengers hostage during a “terrorist attack” in Pakistan’s volatile southwestern Balochistan province.

Gunmen attacked a passenger train in Kacchi district of Pakistan’s southwest on Tuesday.

The incident happened around 1 p.m. local time in rural Sibi district, near a city station where it had been due to stop.

The gunmen bombed the railway track before storming aboard the train.

The militants wounded several people, including the train driver, as they took control of the train in a remote, mountainous area of Balochistan province.

“Over 450 passengers onboard are being held hostage by gunmen,” Muhammad Kashif, a senior railway government official in Quetta, the capital of the province, said.

“Passengers include women and children,” he added.

An emergency has been imposed at hospitals in Sibi, according to the government official.

The attack was immediately claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group which is fighting for independence from Islamabad’s control.

The group has “warned of severe consequences” if an attempt is made to rescue the hostages.

In a statement, the BLA said six military personnel were killed in the attack.

The group said they had taken hostages from the train, including security forces, with the exact number in their custody unclear.

Pakistani railway officials told local media that no contact has been established with the passengers and staff aboard the nine-coach train.

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