Pakistani investigative agencies picked up around 24 suspects in connection with the brazen terror assault on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore but made little headway on Wednesday in zeroing in on the dozen terrorists who fled after injuring seven players and killing eight people.
The suspects were detained during raids by a special investigation team on hostels and guest houses in Lahore's Gulberg area, located near Liberty Chowk traffic roundabout where the Sri Lankan team's bus was attacked on Tuesday.
However, no "prime suspects" are believed to be among those taken into custody, TV channels reported quoting sources.
Some among those held are believed to be Afghan nationals aged between 20 and 30 years.
nvestigators found some bloodstained clothes at a hostel in Gulberg while weapons and explosives were seized from 14 locations across Lahore, the reports said.
The government of Punjab province has offered a reward of Rs 1 crore for information leading to the arrest of terrorists responsible for the attack
Advertisements placed in newspapers by the provincial government sought the help of the public help in identifying
and tracking down the attackers.
The government formed the special investigation team yesterday after a dozen heavily armed terrorists targeted the bus carrying the Sri Lankan cricket team and its police escort at a busy traffic roundabout near Gaddafi Stadium.
Eight persons, most of them policemen, were killed and over 20, including six players and a coach, were injured in the brazen attack which resulted in the Sri Lankan team calling off its tour of Pakistan.
Punjab Governor Salman Taseer told a news conference last night that some clues about the attack had been found though it was too early to say who was responsible for the incident.
He said if any security lapse was detected during the probe, strict action would be taken against the responsible officials.
Taseer also said a complete investigation would be conducted to gather evidence instead of making accusations about "any hidden or foreign hand" being behind the terrorist strike.
The attack was carried out by trained terrorists and preparations for it were not completed in a few days.
Meanwhile, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama arrived in Islamabad this morning for talks with
his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi.