South African delegation satisfied, according to Pakistani police

The South African delegation have expressed their satisfaction over the security arrangements made by Pakistani police for South Africa's tour later this month, a senior police officer said today.

Tariq Jamil, a city police chief, said: "In an hour-long meeting we assured them of the top-level security to be provided to the South African team and they were happy and satisfied."

The meeting, which was held at the office of the paramilitary Rangers was attended by senior police and security officials. And Jamil added: "We told them that there is no specific threat either to the South African team or to the scheduled matches here."

Asad Ashraf Malik, another police officer, said that the South African team would be escorted by the Rangers, while the paramilitary soldiers would also be deployed at the hotel and stadium. He said: "People of Karachi are crazy about cricket and are looking forward to seeing exciting cricket. They love South Africa and the players can themselves judge from the reception they get here."

The three-member delegation includes commercial director Ian Smith, security director Bob Nicholas and Ben van Deventer from the South African police services. They arrived in Pakistan on Saturday to ascertain security at the venues ahead of the tour.