Sri Lankan cricket team attacked in Pakistan

LAHORE, Pakistan – A dozen masked gunmen armed with rifles and rocket launchers attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team as it traveled to a match in Pakistan on Tuesday, wounding several players and killing five police officers, officials said.

The assailants ambushed the team's convoy at a traffic circle close to the main sports stadium in the eastern city of Lahore ahead of a match against Pakistan's national team, triggering a 15-minute gunbattle with police guarding the vehicles.

None of the attackers were killed or captured at the scene, said city police chief Haji Habibur Rehman said. Authorities did not speculate on the identities of the attackers or their motives.

TV footage showed gunmen with backpacks — apparently the attackers — firing at the convoy as they retreated from the scene, with several damaged vehicles and a lone, unexploded grenade lying on the ground.

Pakistan is battling a ferocious insurgency by Islamist militants with links to al-Qaida who have staged high-profile attacks on civilian targets before. Authorities will also be looking possible links to Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger separatist rebels who are being badly hit in a military offensive at home.

The attack took place three months after the Mumbai terror attacks, which were allegedly carried out by Pakistan militants. In the past, nuclear-armed rivals Pakistan and India have blamed each other for attacks in their territories. Any allegations like that would worsen the already dangerously high tensions between the countries.

A Sri Lankan foreign ministry official said two players — Thilan Samaraweera and Tharanga Paranavitana — were hospitalized. He said three more players were slightly injured and that the head coach, Australian Trevor Bayliss, also sustained minor injuries. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Squad member Kumar Sangakkara told Sri Lankan radio station Yes-FM that "all the players are completely out of danger."

"Luckily there's nothing serious and everyone is fine," he said.

Police chief Haji Habibur Rehman said five policemen died in the attack by 12 masked gunmen.

Authorities cancelled the test match and the Lahore governor said the team was flying home.

The attack will surely mean the end of international cricket in Pakistan for months, if not years. Even before, most teams refused to tour the country because of security concerns. It will also have implications on the game's future in South Asia, its most lucrative market.