Breaking: At least 137 killed in Sri Lanka blasts

[Edoman]

Breaking: At least 137 killed in Sri Lanka blasts
 
 
                           
At least 137 people were killed Sunday in a string of blasts at hotels and churches in Sri Lanka as worshippers attended Easter services, a police official told AFP.

The explosions hit three high-end hotels in the capital, where a church was also targeted. Two additional churches were hit, one near Colombo and the other in the east of the country, police said.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said at least 45 people had been killed in Colombo, where three hotels and a church were hit.

Another 67 were killed in an attack on a church in Negombo north of the capital, with another 25 dead at a church in the town of Batticaloa, in the east of the country.

[Edoman]

Over 156 people dead as multiple 'bombs' hit churches and hotels in Sri Lanka



 

 
At least 156 people are dead in an Easter Sunday terrorist attack targeting Christians in Sri Lanka after six explosions ripped through high-end hotels and churches as suspected suicide bombers blew themselves up.  
 
The explosions injured as many as 500 people across the country, and 35 foreigners - from the UK, US and Netherlands are among the dead, sources say.
 
Two of the blasts were suspected to have been carried out by suicide bombers, according to one security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak with reporters.    
 

The official said at least 45 people had been killed in Colombo, where three hotels and a church were hit, along with another 67 in the church attack in Negombo, north of the capital, with another 25 dead at a church in the town of Batticaloa, in the east of the country. The three hotels hit were the Shangri-La Colombo, Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo and the Cinnamon Grand Colombo.

The country's Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, condemned the 'cowardly' attacks after calling an emergency security council meeting, a source said. At least 160 people were injured in the St Anthony's blast had been admitted to the Colombo National Hospital by mid-morning, an official said.  
 
'A bomb attack to our church, please come and help if your family members are there,' read a post in English on the Facebook page of the St Sebastian's Church at Katuwapitiya in Negombo.  Shortly after those blasts were reported, police confirmed three hotels in the capital had also been hit, along with a church in the town of Batticalao, in the east of the country.
by

[Edoman]

Sri Lanka terror attack: Death toll hits 310






The death toll in the Sri Lanka multiple terror attacks has risen to at least 310 while more than 500 people were wounded.
Suicide bombers invaded hotels and churches of Easter Sunday and carried out eight different attacks, leaving 310 people dead. Initially, the death toll was at 290 but, sadly, it has risen to 310.
 

 
Police have arrested 40 suspects as of this morning. No group has claimed the attacks, but Sri Lankan officials have named little-known Islamic extremist organisation National Thowfeek Jamaath.
Families lost multiple relatives in the attack. Some foreigners visiting the country were also among the victims.
 



by Linda Ikeji at 23

[Edoman]

Death toll rises to 359 in Sri Lanks bombings






The death toll from the Easter suicide bombings in Sri Lanka has risen to 359, police said Wednesday.
 
The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the multiple bombings in churches and hotels on Easter Sunday. The terror group also released images purportedly showing the seven bombers who blew themselves up at three churches and three hotels in Sri Lanka.
 
The images released by the Islamic State's propaganda unit, Amaq news agency, showed extremist cleric Zahran Hashim as the mastermind of the attack. It also showed the suicide bombers who carried out Easter Sunday's terror attack but their faces were all covered as they stood against the backdrop of an ISIS flag.
 

 
The terror group named the bombers as Abu Ubayda, Abu al-Mukhtar, Abu Khalil, Abu al-Bara’a, Abu Muhammad and Abu Abdullah.

by Linda