COLOMBO/Jerusalem/islamabaad: Sri Lankan president, prime minister and other political leaders strongly condemned a series of coordinated bomb attacks on churches and hotels on Sunday and urged people to be patient while vowing to bring to justice those responsible for the barbaric act.
The blasts targeted St Anthony’s Church in Colombo, St Sebastian’s Church in the western coastal town of Negombo and another church in the eastern town of Batticaloa around 8.45 a.m. (local time) as the Easter Sunday mass were in progress.
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena expressed shock, deep pain and dismay over the brutal attacks on places of religious worship and other civilian establishments. The President said he has instructed all law enforcement agencies and defence services to take every possible step to maintain law and order and conduct speedy investigations into the dastardly attack and bring the culprits and those who were behind this conspiracy to book.
“I strongly condemn the cowardly attacks on our people today. I call upon all Sri Lankans during this tragic time to remain united and strong. Please avoid propagating unverified reports and speculation. The government is taking immediate steps to contain this situation,” Wickremesinghe said.
Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa condemning the attacks said whoever is behind the attacks must be dealt with immediately. He called on the stand together and rise up against it as one voice. “It is absolutely barbaric to see such violent attacks on such a holy day. Whoever is behind these attacks must be dealt with immediately. My thoughts and prayers are with the families that lost loved ones and all of Sri Lanka,” Rajapaksa said.
“We will not tolerate such violence, such acts of terrorism, of cowardice within our borders once again. We will stand together and rise up against it as one voice. We will stand united as a nation,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Catholic Church in the Holy Land has voiced support for Sri Lanka’s Christians and condemned Easter Sunday attacks on churches and hotels there that killed at least 156 people.
A statement issued in Jerusalem said the blasts were particularly sad as they “came while Christians celebrate Easter.”
“We pray for the souls of the victims and ask for speedy recovery of the injured, and ask God to inspire the terrorists to repent of their killing and intimidation,” the statement said. “We also express our solidarity with Sri Lanka and all its inhabitants in their various religious and ethnic backgrounds.” A string of blasts ripped through churches and high-end hotels as worshippers attended Easter services in Sri Lanka on Sunday. (AFP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin has denounced a series of attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka as “cruel and cynical.”
In a telegram of condolences sent to his Sri Lankan counterpart, the Russian leader said Moscow remains a “reliable partner of Sri Lanka in the fight against international terrorism.”
He added that the Russians “share the grief of the relatives of those killed and wish a quick recovery to all those who were wounded” after the Easter Sunday blasts that killed at least 138 people.
Pakistan condemned terror attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday.
“Pakistan condemns explosions and terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka at churches and hotels that have led to numerous casualties and immense loss. People and Government of Pakistan stand by people and Government of Sri Lanka at this moment of tragedy and against terror,” he said in a tweet. Prime Minister Imran Khan also strongly condemned the barbaric attacks.
Curfew declared
Sri Lanka declared a nationwide curfew after a string of eight explosions, mostly in Colombo, left at least 185 people dead and over 400 injured on Easter Sunday, authorities said.
Xinhua news agency reported that the death toll in the multiple blasts had risen to 185 even as two fresh explosions occurred in two Colombo neighbourhoods in the afternoon.
Islamists blamed for blasts
Islamist extremists carried out the first six major suicide bombings in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, The Daily Mirror reported.
Investigators said that two terrorists had on Saturday checked into Room 616 of The Shangri-La hotel, one of the three Colombo hotels where blasts took place in quick succession.
Close circuit television camera (CCTV) footage revealed that the suspects detonated the bombs in the cafeteria and on the corridor of the hotel, it said.
Investigators suspect that C-4 explosives weighing 25 kg were used for the bombings at the hotel, it said.
The investigators who broke into the room found materials used by “radical Islamic extremists”, the daily quoted sources as saying. It was unclear if the bombers were locals or international terrorists. (Agencies)
