News, Sri Lanka

UPDATED: Churches and hotels across Sri Lanka hit by bomb blasts… at least 200 dead…country rocked by eighth blast

2 Mins Read
Reading Time: 2 minutes

More than 200  people have died and nearly 300 were injured in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday when three churches and four hotels and a zoo were hit by explosions.

Shortly after the six explosions, police reported a seventh explosion in Dehiwela, a few kilometres south of capital Colombo and a suicide attack.

More than 50 of the fatalities were killed in just one church, St. Sebastian’s in Katuwapitiya, north of Colombo.

Multiple blasts in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday
A general view showing the damages after an explosion hit Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Media reported 25 people were also killed in an attack on a church in Batticaloa in Eastern Province.

The three hotels hit were the Shangri-La Colombo, Kingsbury Hotel and Cinnamon Grand Colombo. It was unclear whether there were any casualties in the hotels.

 

 

35 foreigners were among the dead, the officials said.

A hospital source said Americans, British and Dutch citizens were among those killed in the six blasts, which also injured hundreds of people.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attacks.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe called a national security council meeting at his home for later in the day.

Multiple blasts in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday
A general view after a explosion hit at St Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 21 April 2019.

Up to six explosions have been reported at churches and hotels in Sri Lanka as Christians celebrate Easter.

The hotels and one of the churches are in the nation’s capital Colombo. The other church is in Negombo, north of Colombo.

 

 

The blasts have been reported at churches in Kochchikade, Katuwapitiya and Batticaloa.

Early reports indicate that least 80 people had been admitted to hospital in the capital.

 

This is a developing story

Once you're here...

%d bloggers like this: