KUN0091 4 GEN 0220 KUWAIT /KUNA-JBD3 SPO-PAKISTAN-SAF SAF Games rescheduled again in Pakistan ISLAMABAD, Sept 18 (KUNA) -- The thrice postponed South Asian Federation (SAF) Games will be staged by Pakistan in March-April next year, the South Asian Sports Federation (SASF) announced in a press statement here Thursday. "It's a unanimous decision that Pakistan should host the IX SAF Games," acting president of the Pakistan Olympic Association Shahid Ali Shah said in the statement adding, "It's a great honor for Pakistan to host these Games as the feast of sports not only provide healthy competition but help promote friendly relations among the SAARC countries". The biennial games are participated in by members of the seven-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) which groups Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Bhutan. SASF last year also included Afghanistan in the SAF Games fold. The ill-fated games were originally scheduled for Islamabad in October 2001 but were postponed over security fears after the September 11 terror attacks in the United States. They were then rescheduled for March 2002 but were again postponed due to border tensions between Pakistan and India and in March this year Pakistan was forced to cancel the event due to the war in Iraq. (end) amn.rk KUNA 182244 Sep 03NNNN