Turkish league suspended after gun attack on Fenerbahce

Fenerbahce's team bus was damaged by unidentified attackers

Ankara, April 7 (IANS): Turkish football authorities suspended their Super League and Turkish Cup matches for a week after the gun attack on a bus carrying Fenerbahce team players. The Turkish club said on Monday they won't play the league and cup games until those responsible are caught, reports Xinhua.

The Turkish Football Federation and the Union of Turkish Clubs announced on Tuesday after an emergency meeting decided to postpone all games by a week to protest the attack. The bus was shot at on Saturday near the northern city of Trabzon on the team's return to the airport from a 5-1 win against Caykur Rizespor. The driver was hit in the face and hospitalised. He is now in a stable condition.

Fenerbahce officials said the attack was carried out with a shotgun. The Trabzon chief prosecutor's office said on Monday it has launched an attempted murder investigation and that one man has been detained for questioning for making threats to Fenerbahce over internet.

Federation head Yildirim Demiroren, however, said they have ruled against a cancellation of all remaining league games to avoid "rewarding the perpetrators".