Sri Lankan outfit behind Lahore attack - Pakistan PM
Gilani indicated that he had met Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse during a recent visit to Libya, and it was Rajapakse who linked elements in Sri Lanka to the terror act
Cricinfo staff
07-Sep-2009
Ajantha Mendis, with plaster on his head, along with Mahela Jayawardene after their return to Sri Lanka following the ill-fated series • AFP
Pakistan prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani says he has been told by Sri Lanka's president that the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore on
March 3 earlier this year may have been masterminded by terrorists from the island. Gilani said he was informed about this by president Mahinda Rajapakse during a recent visit to Libya.
"The Sri Lankan president told me that they have clues that the attack on the team was funded from Sri Lanka and that some finances had been made from Sri Lanka to Pakistan," Gilani said. "We are sending interior ministry officials to Sri Lanka to get the clues that could help us to get to the attack on the cricket team."
While making their way to the Gaddafi Stadium, five cricketers, including Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, were injured in the attack that also killed six security men and two civilians. Sri Lanka were in Pakistan for a two-Test tour which, as a result of the attack, was terminated abruptly. The attack had immediate repercussions for cricket in Pakistan, as its status as an international sporting venue came under doubt. The ICC subsequently decided to strip the country of its right to host the 2011 World Cup.