Quetta, Oct 25 (IANS): At least 59 police recruits were killed and 116 injured as militants attacked a police academy in the province of Balochistan in Pakistan, media reports said.

Talking to the media, Balochistan Home Minister Sarfraz Bugti said that the operation against the terrorists has been completed by security forces who fought valiantly against the terrorists, Geo Tv reported.

Bugti said that nearly 700 police recruits were present at the time of the attack.

"There were three terrorists and all of them were wearing suicide vests," Dawn news quoted Major General Sher Afgan.

"Two suicide attackers blew themselves up, which resulted in casualties, while the third one was shot dead by our troops," he added.

He also informed the press that the attackers were getting directions from Afghanistan and the initial investigation suggests that the terrorists were affiliated with Lashkar-e- Jhangvi Al Almi.

The attack began around 9.30 p.m. on Monday, as two attackers reportedly entered the complex through the front gate after shooting the guard, while others climbed the rear wall of the training centre.

Three loud explosions were also heard, which occurred inside the training centre.

Police and army personnel have surrounded the vicinity in large numbers as the operation is continuing inside the premises.

An emergency had been declared at hospitals around the provincial capital.

The training centre is situated on Sariab Road, which is one of the most sensitive areas of Quetta. Militants have been targeting security forces in the area for almost a decade.

The training college has come under attack in the past in 2008 and 2006, with attackers firing rockets into the college playground.

In August, a suicide bombing at a Quetta hospital killed 73 persons. The attack was later claimed by the Islamic State group and the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar.