Auckland Tennis Centre evacuated

Auckland: The Auckland Tennis Centre was evacuated on Tuesday after a security scare over an unattended bag.

The bag was found while a protest against Israeli player Shahar Peer was taking place outside the venue hosting the WTA Tour`s Auckland Classic.The tournament spokesman said the centre was evacuated at about 10:40 (21:40 UK time) before the bomb squad carried out a search. "It was an unattended bag, it could have been somebody who went off and got a coffee and left it there," the spokesman said. "As far as we know it wasn`t anything that looked harmful. Obviously on a day like this, with an Israeli playing, it had to be reported.""They put through the squad ... they did a sweep through and it has been done and let everyone back in (at about 11:10)." Play had been due to get underway at 11:00. The unseeded Peer was due to play Slovenia`s Polona Hercog in the first match on Court Four. The New Zealand Press Association reported that about 20 protesters had been outside the venue protesting against Peer`s presence in the tournament. Bureau Report