Pakistan

Pakistani police forces are hunting gunmen who opened fire on a bus carrying the Sri Lankan cricket team in the city of Lahore on Tuesday. The masked men opened fire, killing six policemen escorting the Sri Lankans and a driver. Seven players and an assistant coach were wounded.

The players were on their way to a test match, half a kilometre away from the stadium, as a grenade was fired at the bus. Three gunmen then ran onto the street and opened fire on a police vehicle before proceeding to spray the bus with bullets.  Another bus carrying the umpires for the match came under fire also. It is said that a total of 12 gunmen were involved in the sophisticated execution of this attack, which bore certain similarities to the Mumbai terror attacks in November last year. A Pakistani-based militant group was held accountable for Mumbai and may very well be involved in the shooting in Lahore.

Political figures both in Sri Lanka and Pakistan are condemning the cowardly attacks, with India’s foreign ministry urging an immediate response to the situation. Unfortunately for Pakistan, this incident will change the landscape of the country’s most popular sport entirely as the International Cricket Council (IIC) are re-considering its decision to let Pakistan co-host the 2011 World Cup.

Bangladesh

Border guards in Bangladesh staged a mutiny last week which resulted in nearly 100 deaths. 200 suspected mutineers have rebelled over poor pay and working conditions. The revolt ended as government tanks surrounded the barracks. The police have now arrested the alleged leader of the operation in Dhaka.

The Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) have a security force of approximately 70,000. They are the para-military force responsible for border security. Besides poor pay, they also demanded that officers and commanders were drawn from their own ranks and not from the regular army.

The fatal crisis occurred just 6 weeks after Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had been elected. Sheikh Hasina however exerted exceptional command over the situation by solving the issue through political means rather than bowing to an often known to be overbearing military presence. In fact, this marks a milestone in Bangladeshi politics, which has seen some of its most high profile incidents being taken charge of by the dominant military forces. For the first time, Bangladesh is seen to take control of a situation of this calibre by a democratically elected administration.

Sri Lanka

The United Nations, European Union and India have urged the Sri Lankan government to agree to a temporary ceasefire in the battle with the Tamil Tiger rebels.  The Tigers have declared last week that they are willing to accept international calls for a ceasefire but will not lay down their arms as it will expose them to a cowardly attack by the army. The government however has turned down these calls, claiming that such an intermission will only give the rebels a chance to consolidate their armed efforts in the north-east.

Meanwhile, reports of civilian casualties are growing exponentially with government forces accused of firing artillery shells at a hospital in the ‘safety zone’. Sri Lanka Air Force fighter bombers were also seen bombing targets north of the zone. The shelling accusations have caused a curiosity in the national and international media landscape as to this day, verification of these incidents by independent journalists are not permitted.

To further add to this dilemma, Nadesapillai Vidyatharan, the editor of Sudar Oil Tamil daily, has been detained by the police in connection with the Tamil Tiger air raid on the country’s capital, Colombo. A journalist watchdog has called for the editor’s immediate release and further criticised the government for intimidating and attacking media workers who spoke out against the government. Last month a prominent newspaper editor was shot by gunmen and a TV station was attacked by a group of armed men. The government denies all allegations.

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