Sri Lanka Blasts: 10 Indians Killed in Suicide Bombings, Says MEA
The death toll from a string of explosions that rocked Sri Lanka on Sunday Easter has risen to 310.
New Delhi, April 23: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday said that 10 Indian nationals were killed in the deadly Easter Sunday suicide bombings in Sri Lanka. The Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka identified two more Indian nationals among the 310 people who have been confirmed dead. The deceased were identified as A Maregowda and H Puttaraju.
"Regret to confirm the deaths of two more Indian nationals Mr. A Maregowda and Mr. H Puttaraju in the blasts in Sri Lanka on Sunday, taking the total number of Indian deaths in the tragedy to 10 as of now," the Mission wrote on Twitter tagging External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. The death toll from a string of explosions that rocked Sri Lanka on Sunday Easter has risen to 310.
Sri Lankan Police spokesperson Ruwan Gunasekara said so far 26 suspects have been arrested from across the country and search operations were underway to nab more suspects. President Maithripala Sirisena declared a conditional state of emergency from midnight Monday for the maintenance of essential supplies and services. No group has yet claimed direct responsibility yet. Sri Lanka Never Expected Bombings of Such Magnitude, Says Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando.
The Sri Lankan government on Monday blamed a local Muslim outfit for the suicide bombings. The government said that the National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ), a Sri Lankan Muslim group, carried out the attacks. "NTJ was involved. It is a local organisation. We don't know whether they are linked to outsiders. All those arrested are locals," said Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne.
Suicide bombers carried out as many as eight explosions targeting luxury hotels and Catholic churches in Colombo and other parts of the island nation. The first of the eight blasts took place in the morning in three luxury hotels in Colombo and in a church each in Colombo, Negombo, and in the Tamil-majority Batticaloa town. As authorities rushed for rescue, seven other explosions ripped through churches and luxury hotels in other parts.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 23, 2019 12:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).