Pakistan-Sri Lanka Test is cancelled

6 Sri Lanka cricketers hurt, 7 killed in Lahore shooting
Attack on Sri Lankan team an attempt to spoil Pak reputation: Sherry

A dozen heavily armed gunmen today carried out a commando-style attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team and their police escort in Lahore, Pakistan, injuring up to six of the visiting players and killing five policemen.
In scenes similar to the terrorist attack on Mumbai in November, the gunmen attacked with heavy weapons, spraying the Sri Lankan team bus with bullets as it drove to the Gaddafi stadium in Lahore.

Several players and one Briton in the convoy of vehicles were reported to have received "superficial" injuries. A Sri Lankan foreign ministry official said two players, Thilan Samaraweera and Tharanga Paranavitana, had been taken to hospital. He said three more players were slightly injured and the head coach, Australian Trevor Bayliss, sustained minor injuries.
Television footage showed glimpses of the assailants running through the streets with machine guns in their hands and rucksacks on their backs.

The attack happened in Gulberg, an upmarket area of the city, at around 9am local time. All the gunmen remain at large after retreating into a nearby commercial and shopping area.
Police cordoned off the area, saying they would kill or capture the terrorists.
Habibur Rehman, the police chief of Lahore, said there were around 12 gunmen, at least some of whom arrived in auto-rickshaws.

"Because the police were protecting them [Sri Lankan team], we were the main victims," said Rehman. "They [the gunmen] looked like trained people. The security provided was good."
The vehicle carrying the umpires Simon Taufel and Steve Davis and match official Chris Broad, the father of England bowler Stuart, was also attacked.

A rocket launcher and grenades were recovered from the scene.
The Sri Lankan cricketers, who were playing a Test match against Pakistan in the city, are to be evacuated by military helicopter from the area immediately.

Around 170 people died in Mumbai when militants staged a three-day gun attack. Earlier this year, there was an armed attack on government buildings in central Kabul.

Today's attack is another indication that extremists may have adopted new tactics, preferring guns to the suicide bombings that had become their hallmark.

Cricket teams had stopped visiting Pakistan due to the country's deteriorating security situation, with an international tournament cancelled last year.

Australia and India refused to go on pre-planned tours, and it was with great difficulty that the Pakistani cricket authorities persuaded Sri Lanka to tour the country.
Sanath Jayasuriya, a Sri Lankan cricketer who was not part of the touring team, said that, even in conflict-torn Sri Lanka, cricketers never became the target.

"The good news is that they [the team] are all safe," Jayasuriya said.

Squad member Kumar Sangakkara told the Sri Lankan radio station Yes-FM that "all the players are completely out of danger". "Luckily there's nothing serious and everyone is fine."
The second Test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan ha been called off, according to a Sri Lankan cricket board official. "We are trying to bring the team back as quickly as possible. The test match has been cancelled," he told Reuters.

The former England all-rounder Dominic Cork who was in the stadium to do commentary work for Pakistan TV, told Sky Sports News: "The Sri Lankan players are quite shocked. They all fell to the floor of the team bus when the attack happened.
"Some of them have wounds but I think most of them are superficial wounds. I have spoken to ] Sangakkarra; he has a shrapnel wound in his right shoulder.
"The team are sitting in the changing room watching local TV. They are waiting for helicopters to arrive to take them to a local army base and wait for a connecting flight to Abu Dhabi.

Pakistani helicopter arrives to evacuate Sri Lankan team

A Pakistani air force helicopter landed at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium on Tuesday to evacuate members of the Sri Lankan cricket team following a deadly ambush. The members of the team being rushed to the airport for departure to their homeland en-route Abu Dhabi.

Sri Lanka sends FM to Pakistan after shooting

Updated at: 1142 PST, Tuesday, March 03, 2009 COLOMBO: Sri Lanka rushed Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollegama to Pakistan Tuesday after the national cricket team was attacked in Lahore, the president's office said.