Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Mohsin Naqvi praised the green shirts for their spirited performance throughout the series. Photo: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
The government has decided to deploy military and paramilitary forces to protect the Sri Lankan cricket team after a deadly suicide attack in Islamabad raised security concerns during their ongoing tour, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Thursday.
“And now the Pakistan Army, Rangers and Islamabad Police are jointly managing their security, and we are providing them with the same kind of protocol and security as they are our state guests,” Naqvi, who is also the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), said while speaking in the Senate.
He briefed the Senate on the security situation in the federal capital and explained the circumstances under which Sri Lanka decided to continue its cricket tour of Pakistan, noting that the result was achieved through sustained engagement between the Pakistani and Sri Lankan leaders.
Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir assured Sri Lankan Defense Minister Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon of the team’s safety, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told Parliament in a live television broadcast.
“Our Marshal himself spoke to their Minister of Defense and their Secretary and convinced them and assured them fully of [providing] security,” he added.
“Our army and paramilitary personnel are deployed to ensure the security of the Sri Lankan team,” he added. Naqvi said the Sri Lankan players had expressed serious concerns about remaining in Pakistan after the attack, but those concerns had been resolved.
“The Sri Lankan president spoke personally to the (cricket) team yesterday and encouraged them to play,” Naqvi added.
The cricket stadium and the hotel where the Sri Lanka team is staying are both less than 10 km from the site of the attack.
The Sri Lanka Cricket Board said on Wednesday that several players had requested to return home after the blast, the first attack on civilians in the capital in a decade.
The committee asked the team to stay, saying Pakistani authorities had given “ironclad” security guarantees. He did not respond to a request for additional comment Thursday.
The board said players who chose to return early would undergo a formal review to evaluate their actions.
Security in major cities has since improved, allowing international teams to return. Pakistan Test cricket resumed during the tour of Sri Lanka in 2019.
Sri Lanka play a three-match one-day series in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad, followed by a Twenty20 tri-series involving Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly expressed gratitude for the personal efforts of the President of Sri Lanka, the Minister of Defense and the entire Government of Sri Lanka for their decision to continue the cricket tour to Pakistan.
A resolution tabled by Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said the House appreciates the decision of the Sri Lanka Cricket Board to continue with the tour despite all threats.
The resolution also acknowledges the zeal and dedication of Pakistan’s Interior Minister, CCP Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, and Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif for their all-out efforts to ensure the successful continuation of the tour. (Contributed by Reuters)
