Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago confirms possible terrorist threat to T20 World Cup
The Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago has confirmed a possible terrorist threat to next month’s T20 World Cup, with the ICC reiterating the strength of its security plan.
Cricket authorities have responded to confirmation from the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago of a possible terrorist threat at the T20 World Cup next month.
The International Cricket Council and Cricket West Indies have reiterated that a “comprehensive and robust security plan” is in place for the event to be jointly hosted in six different locations in the West Indies as well as matches in the US.
It’s understood Cricket Australia has been working with DFAT and West Indian and ICC security and was briefed on the situation before the Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister addressed the issue publicly.
“CA is confident the collective efforts of the ICC and local defence forces and police security initiatives will ensure the safety of the Australian team and the overall success of the tournament,” a CA spokesperson said.
“CA will continue to engage with our government authorities and the ICC to ensure the safety and security of our team.”
Australia coach Andrew McDonald declared his squad had “full confidence ... we’re in good hands”.
“Should that situation shift, then we’ll be advised around what that looks like,” McDonald told reporters.
“We’ll be briefed like we are in any country around the security risks, what we can and can’t do, and how we best protect and look after the team.”
Australia and other competing countries are set to arrive in the Caribbean in the coming weeks for a campaign that will last more than five weeks, including warm-up matches.
According to Cricinfo, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley told local newspaper The Sunday Express that security agencies were aware of the terror threat that was sprouted on social media last weekend.
“Unfortunately, the threat of terrorism in its many and varied expressions is an ever-present danger in the world of the 21st century,” Rowley said.
“It is against this backdrop that all nations, like our region, when hosting large or vulnerable gatherings, make an extra effort in national security preparations and response readiness to take seriously, all threats, expressed or implied.
“Given the fact that bad actors can choose to misbehave in any way possible it makes it virtually impossible to completely seal off all opportunities.
“However, in order to ameliorate these dangers, we at the local and regional levels have remained alert to many threats and singularly or together have our intelligence and other security agencies working to protect the population in countries and at venues throughout the tournament.”
The ICC and Cricket West Indies also responded with a joint statement reassuring teams and fans of the extensive security in place for the World Cup
“We work closely with authorities in the host countries and cities, and continually monitor and evaluate the global landscape to ensure appropriate plans are in place to mitigate any risks identified to our event,” the statement said.
“We want to assure all stakeholders that safety and security of everyone at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is our number one priority and we have a comprehensive and robust security plan in place.”
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