Tue, March 31, 2009
Pakistani security forces have taken control of a police training academy in Lahore after gunmen rampaged through the centre's parade ground, firing weapons and lobbing grenades.
Reports suggest dozens have been killed and wounded in the siege, which came a few weeks after gunmen attacked Sri Lanka's cricket team in Lahore.
SCRIPT:
Pakistani security forces are celebrating after re-taking a police academy, seized by gunmen earlier in the day.
The assault happened as police officers carried out morning drills at the school on the outskirts of Lahore.
Witnesses said militants attacked in groups of three or four from all sides, lobbing grenades before machine-gunning cadets assembled on the parade ground.
One local broadcaster aired pictures of about a dozen police lying apparently dead on the ground; wounded officers tried to crawl to safety.
The number of people killed and injured is unclear at this stage.
Ambulances rushed to the scene, taking away the wounded.
Hundreds of police and cadets were at the training school.
The complex is sealed off.
Elite troops, backed by armoured personnel carriers (APC), are encircling the facility.
Throughout the day they traded fire with the gunmen inside before eventually gaining access to the rooftop of the main building.
The latest major strike will heighten fears about mounting insecurity in nuclear-armed Pakistan as it battles al-Qaida and Taliban insurgents on the soil.
It's not immediately clear what group might be behind Monday's attack, but it bears similarities to last month's ambush of the Sri Lankan cricket team bus, which killed eight people.
The militants in that attack escaped - this time the police say they've managed to capture at least three of the gunman.
