Three killed in suicide blast near Kabul cricket stadium
Foreign players including Jayasuriya, Farveez Maharoof, Ashan Priyanjan escaped unhurt
An Afghan policeman stands at the site of a blast in Kabul, Afghanistan September 13, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS
KABUL:
A suicide bomber blew himself up at a checkpoint near the main cricket stadium in the Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday, killing at least three people as a tournament was under way, officials said.
Interior Ministry spokesperson Najib Danesh said two policemen and one civilian were killed and five people wounded. Local Tolo News Television quoted the Afghan Cricket Board as saying all players were safe. Foreign players including Pakistan's Abdur Razzaq, Sri Lanka's Sanath Jayasuriya, Farveez Maharoof, Ashan Priyanjan along with match referee Graem Labrooy escaped unharmed
Taliban deputy leader insists no hand in Kabul attacks
The blast outside Kabul International Cricket Stadium took place during a match in Afghanistan’s Shpageeza Cricket League, a T20 franchise tournament on the lines of the Pakistan Super League and similar 20-over tournaments.
A statement in Bosnian on Islamic State’s Amaq news agency said a suicide attack had been carried out on members of the Afghan security forces in Kabul, although it was not immediately clear whether the statement referred to the same incident.
The Shpageeza tournament, now in its fifth season, is one of a small number of Western-style sports competitions along with Afghan Premier League football that have grown up since a US-led campaign toppled the Taliban in 2001.
Kabul ‘offers third-party verification of terror attacks’
Cricket, which spread from refugee camps in Pakistan, has become one of Afghanistan’s most popular sports and the national team has become increasingly successful, further raising the profile of the game.
A suicide bomber blew himself up at a checkpoint near the main cricket stadium in the Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday, killing at least three people as a tournament was under way, officials said.
Interior Ministry spokesperson Najib Danesh said two policemen and one civilian were killed and five people wounded. Local Tolo News Television quoted the Afghan Cricket Board as saying all players were safe. Foreign players including Pakistan's Abdur Razzaq, Sri Lanka's Sanath Jayasuriya, Farveez Maharoof, Ashan Priyanjan along with match referee Graem Labrooy escaped unharmed
Taliban deputy leader insists no hand in Kabul attacks
The blast outside Kabul International Cricket Stadium took place during a match in Afghanistan’s Shpageeza Cricket League, a T20 franchise tournament on the lines of the Pakistan Super League and similar 20-over tournaments.
A statement in Bosnian on Islamic State’s Amaq news agency said a suicide attack had been carried out on members of the Afghan security forces in Kabul, although it was not immediately clear whether the statement referred to the same incident.
The Shpageeza tournament, now in its fifth season, is one of a small number of Western-style sports competitions along with Afghan Premier League football that have grown up since a US-led campaign toppled the Taliban in 2001.
Kabul ‘offers third-party verification of terror attacks’
Cricket, which spread from refugee camps in Pakistan, has become one of Afghanistan’s most popular sports and the national team has become increasingly successful, further raising the profile of the game.