CLASSIFIED | POLITICS | TERRORISM | OPINION | VIEWS

PAKISTAN GOVERNMENT OFFERS $ 125,000 REWARD FOR INFORMATION THAT HELPS TO ARREST TERRORISTS IN THE ATTACK ON SRI LANKA CRICKETERS

By Walter Jayawardhana

The Pakistan government offered US $ 125,000 (or 10 million Pakistan Rupees ) as reward for anyone giving help to catch the terrorists who attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team near Lahor’s Gaddafi Stadium.

At a joint press conference held together Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama the Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Quereshi said in Islamabad that the Pakistani law enforcement authorities have “important leads”

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama in a statement broadcast by a state owned television channel in Sri Lanka said that the Pakistani President Asif Ali Sardari has telephoned President Mahinda Rajapaksa and had expressed his apology to the President, the government and the people of Sri Lanka over the incident.

So far , no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. A news agency quoting a shocked juice shop owner near the Liberty Chowk traffic circle where the attack took place quoted him as saying , “We just can’t understand why anyone would want to kill Sri Lankan players. They have nothing to do” with the fight against Islamic militants.

A US State Department spokesman, Gordon Dugid has said, “We condemn this vicious attack on innocent civilians, but also on the positive relations that Pakistan and Sri Lanka are trying to enjoy. This is not just an attack on individuals; this is an attack on peaceful, normal relations. And we utterly condemn this terrorist attack.We send our condolences to the families of the victims, and we send our condolences to the injured and the wounded. The Pakistani police, I am given to understand, were extremely brave in protecting their charges and should be commended.”

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have maintained excellent relations with each other for decades and together with China is the principal supplier of military hardware in the on going war with the Tamil Tigers at present.

The Sri Lankan Foreign Minister said that Pakistan has promised to share all the relevant information with Sri Lanka.

Geo Television reported the police has taken into custody about 100 suspects but did not reveal its source.

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