Page 10 - aruba-today-20190423

A10 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 23 april 2019

Easter Sunday bomb blasts kill more than 200 in Sri Lanka

By BHARATHA MALLA- country of about 21 million while they were gathered
WARACHI people. in prayer, and all the vic-
KRISHAN FRANCIS Prime Minister Ranil Wick- tims of such cruel violence,"
Associated Press remesinghe said he feared Francis said.
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka the massacre could trigger Six nearly simultaneous
(AP) — Nine bombings of instability in Sri Lanka, and blasts took place in the
churches, luxury hotels and he vowed to "vest all nec- morning at the shrine and
other sites on Easter Sun- essary powers with the de- the Cinnamon Grand,
day killed more than 200 fense forces" to take action Shangri-La and Kingsbury
people and wounded hun- against those responsible. hotels in Colombo, as well
dreds more in Sri Lanka's The Archbishop of Colom- as at two churches outside
deadliest violence since a bo, Cardinal Malcolm Ran- Colombo, according to a
devastating civil war in the jith, called on Sri Lanka's Sri Lankan military spokes-
South Asian island nation government to "mercilessly" man, Brig. Sumith Atapattu.
ended a decade ago. punish those responsible A few hours later, two more
Defense Minister Ruwan Sri Lankan army soldiers secure the area around St. Sebastian's "because only animals can blasts occurred just outside
Church damaged in blast in Negombo, north of Colombo, Sri
Wijewardena described Lanka, Sunday, April 21, 2019. behave like that." Colombo, one of them at
the blasts as a terrorist at- Associated Press Police spokesman Ruwan a guesthouse, where two
tack by religious extremists, Gunasekara said at least people were killed, the oth-
and police said 13 suspects The explosions — mostly in smoke, soot, blood, broken 207 people were killed and er near an overpass, Ata-
were arrested, though or around Colombo, the glass, screams and wailing 450 wounded. He said po- pattu said.
there was no immediate capital — collapsed ceil- alarms. Victims were car- lice found a safe house Also, three police officers
claim of responsibility. Wi- ings and blew out win- ried out of blood-spattered and a van used by the at- were killed during a search
jewardena said most of the dows, killing worshippers pews. tackers. at a suspected safe house
bombings were believed to and hotel guests in one "People were being The scale of the bloodshed on the outskirts of Colombo
have been suicide attacks. scene after another of dragged out," said Bha- recalled the worst days of when its occupants appar-
nuka Harischandra, of Sri Lanka's 26-year civil war, ently detonated explosives
Colombo, a 24-year-old in which the Tamil Tigers, a to prevent arrest, authori-
founder of a tech market- rebel group from the eth- ties said.
ing company who was go- nic Tamil minority, sought The Shangri-La's second-
ing to the Shangri-La Hotel independence from the floor restaurant was gut-
for a meeting when it was Buddhist-majority country. ted, with the ceiling and
bombed. "People didn't The Tamils are Hindu, Mus- windows blown out. Loose
know what was going on. It lim and Christian. wires hung down and ta-
was panic mode." Sri Lanka, situated off the bles were overturned in the
He added: "There was southern tip of India, is blackened space. From
blood everywhere." about 70 percent Buddhist. outside the police cordon,
Most of those killed were Scattered incidents of anti- three bodies could be seen
Sri Lankans. But the three Christian harassment have covered in white sheets.
bombed hotels and one of occurred in recent years, Foreign tourists hurriedly
the churches, St. Anthony's but nothing on the scale of used their cellphones to
Shrine, are frequented by what happened Sunday. text family and loved ones
foreign tourists, and Sri Lan- There is also no history of that they were OK. Visi-
ka's Foreign Ministry said violent Muslim militants in Sri tors from around the world
the bodies of at least 27 Lanka. However, tensions come to Sri Lanka to see
foreigners from a variety of have been running high elephants, tea plantations,
countries were recovered. more recently between ancient Buddhist monu-
The U.S. said "several" Amer- hard-line Buddhist monks ments and other sights.
icans were among the and Muslims. "I had a sense that the
dead, while Britain, China, Two Muslim groups in Sri country was turning the
Japan and Portugal said Lanka condemned the corner, and in particular
they, too, lost citizens. church attacks, as did those in the tourism industry
The Sri Lankan government countries around the were hopeful for the future,"
imposed a nationwide cur- world, and Pope Francis said tourist Peter Kelson, a
few from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. expressed condolences at technology manager from
and blocked most social the end of his traditional Sydney. "Apart from the
media including Face- Easter Sunday blessing in tragedy of the immediate
book and YouTube, say- Rome. victims of the bombings,
ing it needed to curtail the "I want to express my lov- I worry that these terrible
spread of false information ing closeness to the Chris- events will set the country
and ease tension in the tian community, targeted back significantly."q