The Sri Lankan government has blamed the National Thowfeek Jamaath, a little known Muslim militant group, for the coordinated attacks on churches and hotels that…
The Sri Lankan government has blamed the National Thowfeek Jamaath, a little known Muslim militant group, for the coordinated attacks on churches and hotels that rocked the island nation on Easter Sunday.
Sri Lanka Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne says the small group was aided by an international network.
“We do not believe these attacks were carried out by a group of people who were confined to this country,” Senaratne said. “There was an international network without which these attacks could not have succeeded.”
The radical Islamist group has been linked to the vandalism in recent years of Buddhist statues, and has earned a reputation for being against Buddhism, the country’s main religion.
At least one suicide bomber involved in the explosions had been previously arrested for defacing Buddhist statues and then released “on orders from higher authorities,” according to Highways Minister Kabir Hashim, as reported in a local outlet.
No one claimed responsibility for Sunday’s violence but by Monday, police had arrested 24 suspects linked to the blasts, which took place at three prominent churches and three luxury hotels. They also said they found 87 bomb detonators at a bus station in Colombo, the nation’s capital, according to media reports.
Another explosion occurred Monday near the bombed-out St. Anthony’s Shrine in Colombo, after bomb disposal experts tried to neutralize explosives inside a parked van. No injuries were reported.
The day was filled with funerals — accompanied by military and police protection — after a night lit by candles for victims.
Residents hung flags outside St. Anthony’s Shrine to mourn the dead. Flags of mourning were also strung outside the Negombo Grand Mosque, in a fishing town where a second church, St. Sebastian’s, was targeted.
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, who was not in the country during the attacks, declared April 23 as a Day of National Mourning. The government also said that it would compensate victims and support church reconstruction efforts, according to local media.
Victims of the attacks
Nearly 300 people were killed and more than 500 injured in the coordinated attacks.
