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Day two of the ASB Classic in Auckland has been marred by a
security scare which saw the entire tennis stadium evacuated.
It came at the same time as anti-Israel protesters gathered
outside, opposing Israeli player Shahar Peer's inclusion in the
competition.
Up to 500 people were evacuated shortly before play was due to
begin and were locked out of the stadium for half an hour as police
blocked off Auckland Domain and surrounding streets - all because
of an unattended handbag spotted by stadium staff.
"It was purely precautionary, the management acted quickly, they dealt with it well, there was no threat," says Kerry Watson from the Auckland City police.
The bag belongs to Lynette Bendrey, who left it under her seat as she went for a wander, never thinking it would cause a problem.
Within minutes the stadium was in lockdown, and staff were showing her out.
"I asked what what's happening, and she said 'oh well there's been a bomb scare' and everyone's been evacuated out of the stands, and I said 'oh, I hope it's not my bag'," Bendrey says.
Organisers were not taking any chances with Israeli player Peer on court.
The group protesting, called Global Peace and Justice, had sent Peer a letter asking her to withdraw from the tournament because of Israel's policies towards Palestinians.
Spokesman John Minto acknowledges they are asking Peer to make a significant sacrifice as she makes her living as a professional tennis player.
However he says greater sacrifices are being forced onto Palestinians.
Last year her game was marred by anti-Israel protesters and on Tuesday they turned up again, just as the handbag was spotted.
"We believed we need to be erring on the side of caution and be responsible in this bag being unattended," says Greig Branwell from Tennis Auckland.
Event production manager Danny Rapira says people need to be aware that this is the world we live in now.
"When you're at these events, don't leave your bags unattended at all, anywhere, at any time," he says.
It was a lesson learned the hard way for Bendrey.
"It makes me feel really awful, I almost needed a stiff drink afterwards, I was shaking a bit," she says.
Those nerves quickly settled as play began and attention returned to the action on-court.
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