Information Minister Pervez Rashid has confirmed that a police sub-inspector was killed while preempting a suicide attack near the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday night as a one-day international cricket match between Pakistan and Zimbabwe was being played inside the stadium.
Rashid told a news channel late on Friday night that an attempt to attack the stadium was foiled by a police official, who lost his life while trying to stop the suicide attacker near Kalma Chowk. He said that a civilian was also killed and six others were wounded in the incident. The information minister also praised the Pakistan Broadcasters Association for “covering up” the news while the cricket match was ongoing so as not to spread panic.
Local media had at first reported an explosion close to Gaddafi stadium but reports were taken off air after it was falsely asserted that the explosion was caused by an electricity transformer in the area.
A senior police official later confirmed that Sub-Inspector Abdul Majeed and a civilian Rizwan were killed in the blast. He, however, claimed that the blast happened inside a rickshaw.
