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360 killed in terrorist blasts targeting Easter in Sri Lanka

update: 3 Police Officers are dead in Colombo while raiding a house
 
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Please refrain from making this a India vs Pakistan mug slinging contest, We’re bleeding and in pain and shock.. Take you petty arguments elsewhere

I am feeling extremely sad and sorrowful on, whatever is happening in SL today. Particularly so, also owing to some personal associations with some SL friends, back in 1980s, in a foreign university.

I am sorry, but where have I, in my any comment on this thread, made any allusion to India and Pakistan. Yes, what I said is that it appears to be some act against the SL state itself, though the apparent target is Christian community. You appear to be mistaken, in this regard.
 
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I thought Tamil Tigers were dead . Is it them or some other group ?

All clues points to Jihadists/ ISIS returnees.. The sheer complexity and the planning and resources that went in to this cannot be done without some kind of a foreign conspiracy as well

LTTE was essentially a .org dominated by Catholics and the victims of the Batticalao Church attack were exclusively Tamil.. So no they do not have the means nor the motive for this
 
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I am sorry, but where have I, in my any comment on this thread, made any allusion to India and Pakistan. Yes, what I said is that it appears to be some act against the SL state itself, though the apparent target is Christian community. You appear to be mistaken, in this regard.


That comment was not for you mate but for few others that has turned this thread in to a India vs Pakistan conspiracy thread.. Cheers
 
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https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/east...otels-and-churches-kill-least-207-doc-1ft48d7

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the blasts, but documents seen by AFP show that Sri Lanka's police chief Pujuth Jayasundara issued an intelligence alert to top officers 10 days ago, warning that suicide bombers planned to hit "prominent churches".

"A foreign intelligence agency has reported that the NTJ (National Thowheeth Jama'ath) is planning to carry out suicide attacks targeting prominent churches as well as the Indian high commission in Colombo," the alert said.

The NTJ is a radical Muslim group in Sri Lanka that was linked last year to the vandalisation of Buddhist statues.

The government ordered a nationwide curfew to start immediately and last "until further notice", and a "temporary" social media ban was imposed "in order to prevent incorrect and wrong information being spread".

https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/sri...uffet-at-cinnamon-grand-hotel-1.1555849958833

Sri Lanka blast: Suicide bomber waited in queue for Easter Sunday buffet at Cinnamon Grand Hotel
The man had registered at the hotel the night before as Mohamed Azzam Mohamed


Colombo: The suicide bomber waited patiently in a queue for the Easter Sunday breakfast buffet at Sri Lanka's Cinnamon Grand hotel before setting off explosives strapped to his back.

Carrying a plate, the man, who had registered at the hotel the night before as Mohamed Azzam Mohamed, was just about to be served when he set off his devastating strike in the packed restaurant, a manager at the Sri Lankan hotel said.

"There was utter chaos," said the manager, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity as he is not allowed to speak for the company.

The Taprobane restaurant at the hotel was having one of its busiest days of the year for the Easter holiday weekend.

"It was 8:30 am and it was busy. It was families," the manager told AFP.


"He came up to the top of the queue and set off the blast," he added.

"One of our managers who was welcoming guests was among those killed instantly."

The bomber also died. Parts of his body were found intact by police and taken away.

Other hotel officials told how the bomber, a Sri Lankan, checked in giving an address that turned out to be false, saying he was in the city for business.

Two other hotels, the Shangri-La and the Kingsbury, were hit at about the same time, along with three churches packed with worshippers attending Easter Sunday services.


The blast at St Anthony's Shrine, an historic Catholic Church, was so powerful that it blew out much of the roof, leaving roof tiles, glass and splintered wood littering the floor that was strewn with bodies.

Authorities have not said who staged the attacks. But all suffered major casualties and damage. Many of the 35 foreigners killed in the blasts were at the hotels, officials said.

'Shock, grief and mourning'
"There was utter chaos, but we rushed all the injured to hospital in a very short time," the Cinnamon Grand manager said.

"About 20 people were seriously wounded and we sent them to the National Hospital."


The hotel is close to the Sri Lankan prime minister's official residence and Special Task Force commandos were quickly at the scene.

At the Shangri-La, witnesses said they heard two loud blasts and that staff reported some people had been killed. But details of the toll were not immediately given.

An AFP photographer saw extensive damage in the second floor restaurant at the hotel, with windows blown out and electrical wires hanging from the ceiling.

The Shangri-La said in a statment that the bomb hit at approximately 9:00 am local time at its Table One restaurant.

"We are deeply saddened and shocked by the incident and our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the casualties and those who have been affected," it said.

"Our immediate priority is to look after the safety and wellbeing of all involved. A Shangri-La crisis management team has been activated to provide all necessary support."

The Kingsbury is also one of Colombo's most expensive hotels, positioned near the city's World Trade Center.

The toll there was not known.

In a statement on its Facebook page, the hotel said: "On behalf of the entire Kingsbury team we share in the shock, grief and mourning of our entire nation in the aftermath of the recent attack."

"Medical evacuation and treatment of the injured guests and employees were handled immediately." The hotel said it had been "isolated" for further safety checks.
 
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My deepest sympathies go out to all of those affected at this tragic time only a devil regardless which religion he or she claims to belong will carry out this heinous, disgusting act, I hope Sri Lankan security personal catch these bastards and grind them and yes I do mean literally grind them!

Blasts come amid rising religious tension between Buddhists, Muslims and Christians

The Easter Sunday attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka are the latest flashpoint amid ongoing religious tensions in the island nation.

Sri Lanka has long been divided between the majority Sinhalese, who are overwhelmingly Buddhist, and minority Tamils who are Hindu, Muslim and Christian.

The country remains deeply scarred by its 1983-2009 civil war, when Tamil rebels fought to create an independent homeland.

The rebels were eventually crushed but a religious divide has taken hold in recent years.

A Christian group said there had been 86 cases of discrimination, threats and violence against followers of Jesus last year, with another 26 so far this year.

The U.S. State Department warned in a 2018 report that Christians had been pressured to close places of worship after they were deemed 'unauthorized gatherings'.

The report also said Buddhist monks regularly tried to close down Christian and Muslim places of worship.

There have also been attacks on Muslims, with the government forced to declare a state of emergency amid a spate of anti-Muslim rioting.

Hard-line Buddhist groups accuse Muslims of forcing people to convert and destroying sacred Buddhist sites.

One radical Muslim group, the NTJ, has been linked to the vandalisation of Buddhist statues .

Out of Sri Lanka's total population of around 22million, 70 percent are Buddhist, 13 per cent Hindu, 10 per cent Muslim, and seven per cent Christian, according to the country's 2012 census.
 
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Cowards always pick places of worship because they are the most easiest places to target.

Bloodthirsty vermins. Whoever did it I hope they dont get a prison sentence but locked up in a dark dungeon locked in chains and full of cockroaches and rats. This is what these creatures deserve I dont say animals because animals are innocent compared to what these filthy terrorists do regardless of their race, ethnic group or religion.
 
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This is a terrible tragedy. Sri Lanka is one of the nicest places in the entire region, lovely, easy going people and a very civilised society.

I hope they catch and destroy the entire infrastructure behind the people who did it, just like they did with LTTE.
 
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Easter Day bombing: 32 foreigners dead

A total of thirty-two foreigners from are among the killed in the explosions took place in Colombo today (21), stated the Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism.

The killed foreign nationals are from Belgium, China, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom, he further said.

A series of explosions around the country this morning has killed at least 207 persons and injured over 450 persons.

http://www.adaderana.lk/news/54512/easter-day-bombing-32-foreigners-dead
 
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