Lahore, Nov 2 : The dead body of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein who was executed around two years ago, was stabbed at least six times (after being executed), the head guard at the former president’s tomb in north of Baghdad has claimed. The guard was one of the 300 persons who helped bury the corpse.

“There were six stab wounds on his body. Four of the wounds were on the former president’s front and two on his back,” Pakistani daily the Daily Times quoted Talal Misrab (45), the head guard, as saying in an interview with The Times.

He also said there was an injury to his face, and that 300 other people witnessed the injuries when the body was buried in the early hours of the morning, the day after Saddam was executed.

Lahore, Nov 1 : Pakistani investigators have stated that members of the banned Harkatul Jihad-al-Islami (HUJI) were involved in the Marriott Hotel suicide attack on September 20 that killed more than 70 people.

Pakistan’s Samaa TV quoted investigators as saying that the suspects arrested after the suicide attack in Islamabad belonged to the HUJI’s Saifullah group.

Lahore, Oct 31 : Geoff Lawson believes his sacking as the Pakistan cricket coach had nothing to do with his performance but was influenced by political changes in the country and the change in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) set-up.

The former Australian bowler will return home on Friday after just over a year as coach of the national team.

The PCB cleared his financial dues with a final payment of 80,000 dollar, which included a bonus for guiding the national team into the final of the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa last year.

Lawson had refused to leave until the PCB cleared all his payments and this was done on Monday by the board, the Daily Times reported.

Lahore, Oct 31 : The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is confident of getting all its stadiums ready to host the home series against India in January and February.

The board has decided to spend Rs. 800 million on refurbishing all five venues for the tour, which includes three Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20.

Salim Altaf, the PCB’s director general, is confident the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium will be ready in time to host the second Test and third one-dayer.

The venue was dropped from the Champions Trophy as the renovation work wasn’t complete and the ICC wasn’t convinced about the security situation there.

The tournament was eventually postponed due to security concerns, the Daily Times reported.

Lahore, Oct 31 : With the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) set to review Shoaib Malik’s performance as the national team captain at the end of this year, flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi has expressed his desire to lead the side if given a chance.

He made it clear that if given a chance to captain Pakistan, he would not turn down the offer, the Daily Times reported.

However, he admitted that at present he was under tremendous pressure to retain his place in the side due to a slump in his batting form.

Lahore, Oct 31 : Shahryar Mohammad Khan, the former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman, has cautioned the ICC against overturning the result of the controversial England-Pakistan Test at The Oval in 2006, now a draw, back to a forfeit.

“The ICC will only make fun of itself and it will leave them in a very awkward position,” Shahryar told media on Thursday.

The PCB is currently awaiting the ICC’s reaction to the MCC’s recommendation that the result of the Oval Test be reversed and awarded to England, the Daily Times reported.