Suspect arrested in Sri Lanka cricket attack

Pakistani police arrested a militant on Wednesday they suspect was involved in an attack on Sri Lanka’s cricket team in Lahore in March.

Seven Pakistanis, including six police guards were killed and a few Sri Lankan crickets were injured when gunmen ambushed them as they drove to a cricket stadium for a match.

Lahore police chief Pervez Rathor told reporters in the eastern city seven attackers had been identified and one had been arrested.

“We have broken up a Punjabi Taliban network and we have arrested an attacker who shot dead a policeman,” Rathor said, referring to Punjab province, of which Lahore is capital.

Police said in a statement the suspect was arrested in Lahore through a trace on his mobile telephone. He had been trained in a Pakistani Taliban stronghold in Makeen, in South Waziristan on the Afghan border, for a suicide attack, police said.

The suspect, who police identified as Zubair, also known as Naik Mohammad, appeared at the news conference with a blanket over his head to hide his identity.

The man spoke briefly to reporters, saying he was one of seven gunmen and had arrived in Lahore two days before the attack.

He said he had stayed in a tiny room with a man who organised the attack he identified as Aqeel.

Rathor said the suspected attack mastermind, Aqeel, was wanted in connection with an attempt to assassinate former president Pervez Musharraf.

LAHORE, AFP