Lankan civil war increases England security fears

Colombo: England’s cricket team, currently touring Sri Lanka, is finding itself caught up in the country’s civil war because Britain is about to name London-based militant groups it will ban under a new anti-terrorist legislation.

A Sri Lankan rebel group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, is headquartered in London and the Sri Lankan government has been lobbying for it to be banned. The pending decision has increased security fears for the England team, ahead of the first Test on Thursday.

‘‘We are indeed taking all precautions,’’ said Deputy Inspector General of Police Jayantha Gamage. ‘‘We are aware of the situation and we will ensure that everything goes off well inside and outside the cricket field,’’ said Gamage, who heads an elite police force called Ministerial Security Division and is in charge of providing security to government ministers.

Copyright © 2001 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.