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The ICC is calm for now

Heightened security activity on the cards among the agencies involved, after the carnage in Christchurch

Lokendra Pratap Sahi Calcutta Published 15.03.19, 11:07 PM
Police officers prepare to search the area near the Masjid Al Noor mosque, site of one of the mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand on Saturday, March 16, 2019.

Police officers prepare to search the area near the Masjid Al Noor mosque, site of one of the mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand on Saturday, March 16, 2019. AP

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has, on the face of it, reacted calmly to the killings in Christchurch, which was to host a New Zealand-Bangladesh Test from Saturday.

The ICC comes into the picture as, two-and-a-half months from now, it will be conducting the World Cup in England, specifically from May 30-July 14.

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“There’s no evidence, as yet, to suggest that the Bangladesh squad was the target of the gunman who mowed down 41 persons in and around the Al Noor Mosque. There’s no direct link...

[Eight more were killed at the Linwood Mosque, ensuring that blood was pretty much everywhere in Christchurch.]

“However, security is an ongoing thing and reviews are often a daily feature. The process is never stagnant...

“While there have been terror threats in England, even during the 2017 Champions Trophy, there were none in New Zealand...

“The agencies we’re dealing with will be getting inputs from the authorities in England, not directly from New Zealand,” one of the well-placed sources in the ICC told The Telegraph on Friday.

While that is the ICC’s official position, there’s bound to be heightened activity among the agencies involved (not just the Met Police, by the way) after the carnage in Christchurch.

Of the 10 participating teams in the World Cup, only the West Indies have a terror-free record. New Zealand is no longer on that select list.

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