It has been confirmed that the explosion which took place close to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore where the second match of the Pakistan v Zimbabwe ODI series was played, was due to a suicide attack, and not just a gas explosion as earlier thought. Two policemen were killed in the attack.
Zimbabwe have been the first international team to tour Pakistan since the attack by terrorists on a bus carrying Sri Lankan cricketers in 2008. Since then, Pakistan has been shunned by all cricket teams. Pakistani cricket fans haven’t seen any international cricket for over 7 years in their own country. So, when Zimbabwe, perhaps one of the world’s poorest nations announced plans to visit Pakistan, this was treated with great joy by the people of Pakistan.
However, the suicide attack has shaken the Zimbabwe side, and while they are agreed to continue with the tout for the present, they have cancelled plans to go shopping in Lahore. Pakistan, as our readers are aware, is considered to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world, where terrorist attacks are frequent – such as the recent attack on a school which killed over 200 school children.
The Federation of International Cricketers’ Association (FICA) had warned Zimbabwe against touring Pakistan much ahead of the series. The executive chairman of the FICA, Tony Irish insisted that playing in Pakistan was still very much unsafe: “This was a tragic loss of life over cricket and demonstrates that the security situation remains unmanageable and the risks of touring Pakistan are unacceptable. I am very surprised Zimbabwe are staying on to play the third ODI.”
A spokesman for the Pakistan Cricket Board said, “The incident happened away from the main premises and nothing is affected. The tour will go ahead as planned and the Zimbabwe team will continue with their usual activities today, though they are not training today. They will play the third match on Sunday and subsequently will fly back in the wee hours of Monday.”
Amin Wains, the Capital City Police Officer, said he would not as yet reveal all the details of the blast as investigations were still very much on. He added that the security given to the Zimbabwe team was beefed up by quite a bit and that the players were safe.
Mr. Wians says: “At this point of time it is not possible for me confirm or say something conclusive that whether it is a suicide attack or cylinder blast. All evidence collected says that most probably a cylinder blast took place in the three-wheeler autorickshaw. We have sent all the evidence to the forensic lab to confirm the nature of the blast.
“There was a statement from the (federal) government which came without speaking to us whether it was a suicide or cylinder blast but as a city police chief within 48 hours we will share all with you.
“Most important it took place outside the red zone which was created for the team. So there was absolutely no abnormality inside or outside the stadium as things were moving normally throughout. Everyone knows that it is a minor sort of incident, although it took two innocent lives, but had it been a suicide the casualties could have been much more than this.
“We have beefed up our security and enhanced our red zone area. We have the resolve and the capacity to provide full security to the honourable members of the Zimbabwe team. They are heroes, we treat them like heroes. We are very delighted that they are visiting our country and this nation is very happy.”
