Ali Abbas Ahmadi
Live reporter

A retired army brigadier and defence expert has elaborated on the complexity of the rescue operation taking place in northern Pakistan.

It's currently just after 16:00 local time in Battagram, with sunset expected at about 18:48 (13:48 GMT).

The high altitude, strong winds and the crooked cable car make it challenging for rescuers to retrieve the eight people trapped in the vehicle.

“It is precarious and difficult,” Tipu Sultan told Geo News.

The helicopter needs to hover at the right height above the cable car while a soldier descends to the cable car. If it moves the wrong way in the strong winds, it could severely damage the rescue efforts, he said.

“He has to pick up the children from an angle where the cable car is not turned over and the other children don’t fall,” he added.

Farhat Javed
BBC Urdu Senior Journalist, reporting from Islamabad

I have just spoken with local police officer Muhammad Amjad who was at the scene.

He says four helicopters have so far taken part in the operation and confirmed that lift mechanics have also reached the area now and are trying to make alternative arrangements and begin repairing work.

Muhammad says parents of the children are at the scene and there is a complete chaos.

They are crying and begging the administration to save their children. Locals have been using this lift for many years now.

We've just seen more pictures of the suspended cable car, that show how complex this rescue operation is with a vehicle suspended mid-air in the mountains.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Farhat Javed
BBC Urdu Senior Journalist, reporting from Islamabad

In the whole of the region of Mansehra, Kashmir, up to the northern areas of Gilgit-Baltistan, such cable cars are very common for river crossings as well as to cut the distance short between valleys in the mountains.

These are built by local communities and mostly illegally, because there is little or no infrastructure and it's cheaper.

Sometimes they're made of the upper body of a pick-up truck. For instance a Suzuki is converted into a big cabin used to transport people and cattle.

The fare is far less than using road transport - depending on the distance, beginning from as little as 20 PKR (£0.053).

Zubair Khan
BBC Urdu journalist, reporting from Abbottabad

Eight people are stuck in the cable car. Six of them are between ten and 16 years old. They are students.

Gulfaraz, one of the people in the vehicle, is not a student. He is 20 years old.

There is also a heart patient in this cable car. He is 16 years old. He has been unconscious for the past two hours, according to Gulfaraz.

We were told this an hour ago by Gulfaraz but his phone is now silent.

We've been sent these pictures by Altaf Hussain, a teacher at another local school.

He is currently at the scene, where he witnessed a solider travel down a rope from a helicopter towards the cable car a little earlier.

Image source, Altaf Hussain

Image source, Altaf Hussain

Image source, Altaf Hussain

Zubair Khan
BBC Urdu journalist, reporting from Abbottabad

Allai, in Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, is a mountain region area. It's a beautiful area, but has no road infrastructure or basic facilities.

Cable chair lifts are used for transportation from one mountain to another, and for transporting water and food.

School children also use them. Settlements are spread far and wide.

These people are stranded at about 300 meters. Allai has an altitude of more than 4,500 meters above sea level.

Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority earlier confirmed that a helicopter had been dispatched to the area where the cable car is dangling above a ravine in Battagram.

Two helicopters are now at the scene.

But the operation is being hampered due to gusty winds and the fact the helicopter's rotor blades risk further destabilising the lift, Shariq Riaz Khattak, a rescue official at the site, told Reuters news agency.

Image source, Mughees Ali/Twitter

There is footage on social media of a Pakistani soldier descending from a hovering helicopter towards the suspended cable car.

The BBC has not independently verified these images yet, and it's not clear whether the manoeuvre was an effort to rescue people from the car.

Some local media outlets have reported it was an attempt to carry supplies to the trapped passengers.

We're working to verify the images we're seeing on the ground and will update you as we learn more.

One of the people stuck in the cable car has been speaking to a television channel in Pakistan by phone.

"For God's sake help us," the man, named Gulfraz, told Geo News. He confirmed eight people were on board.

One of the students had fallen unconscious in the past three hours, he said, adding that students on board were aged between 10 and 15 years old.

"People in our area are standing here and crying," Gulfaraz said, urging authorities to send immediate help.

According to images online, the cable car is stranded in the middle of a deep ravine in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Here are the first pictures we're seeing of the dramatic rescue attempt, as crowds gather along the mountainside to watch.

The armed forces in Pakistan have begun the rescue operation in Battagram, with two helicopters at the scene.

Footage posted online shows what has been described as a "commando" descending from a helicopter to towards the cable car below.

Pakistani news channel GeoNews reported on air that the commando had initially descended to the cable car to give the people inside instructions, but was forced to retreat due to strong winds in the region.

Anwaar ul Haq Kakar, Pakistan's caretaker prime minister, says the incident is "really alarming".

He has directed the authorities "to urgently ensure safe rescue and evacuation of the eight people stuck in the chairlift".

He also ordered "safety inspections of all such private chairlifts and ensure that they are safe to operate and use."

Image source, PAKISTAN NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT AGENCY

A rescue operation is under way in Pakistan for eight people - including six children - who are trapped in a cable car dangling over a valley.

Here's what we know so far:

• A cable snapped, leaving the car hanging 274m (900 ft) above ground
• It is currently “suspended by a single rope”, officials say
• The incident happened at about 07:00 local time (02:00 GMT) on Tuesday
• The children were crossing the valley on their way to school in a mountainous part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
• Pakistan's acting PM has ordered rescuers to attend the "alarming" incident
• Military helicopters have reached the scene

Marita Moloney
Live reporter

Welcome to our live coverage of a rescue operation in northern Pakistan, where six children and two adults are trapped in a cable car suspended hundreds of metres above a ravine in Battagram, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The eight passengers were on their way to school when some of the cables snapped earlier this morning, leaving the vehicle dangling from a single cable.

Rescue operations are under way and army helicopters are at the scene.

We'll be bringing you the latest on the rescue, so stay with us.