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
Pakistani army soldiers arrive at the Balochistan Police Training College in Quetta on October 24, 2016, after militants attacked the police academy. Photo: AFP
Quetta: At least 61 people, mostly young cadets, were massacred and more than 100 others injured when heavily-armed Islamic State militants attacked a police training centre here in the capital of the restive Balochistan province, in one of the deadliest terror attacks in Pakistan.
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The attack on the facility lasted until early hours yesterday. At least three gunmen stormed Quetta’s Police Training College last night and targeted the sleeping quarters of recruits. They first killed a police guard at the watchtower and then stormed the dormitory. The attack sent the terrified men aged between 15 and 25 fleeing for safety. Many of them jumped off the rooftops.
Eyewitnesses said the attackers were armed with Kalashnikovs. The attack appeared well coordinated, with experts saying the militants fired at the training centre from five points. Most of the deaths occurred when two of the attackers blew themselves up. The third was shot dead by Frontier Corps troops.
“We can confirm 61 dead in the attack. They include 60 cadets and one army soldier,” officials said.
The Balochistan government came under attack over poor security arrangements at the police training academy. Senior officials said the terrorists managed to enter the facility, which has been previously attacked twice, taking advantage of the inadequate security arrangements.
Despite perceived security threats, the wall of the centre was made up of mud and five-feet high, officials said. They added that security should have been enhanced since the facility was in a sensitive area.
On September 6, Inspector General Police Balochistan Ahsan Mehboob had requested Chief Minister Sanaullah Zehri for construction of a boundary wall for the academy. Zehri had promised to get it done. But the attack took place before the wall could be constructed.
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